Shepherds We Shall Be
by Striped Leopard 626
Summary: A woman named Brigh is kidnapped by the Italian mafia, and now her little sister Keeva is trying to save her for a second time. But this time, it will take the work of the Saints.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, I know there aren't a lot of Boondock Sainst readers, but those of you who do read this, please review. I don't care if you love it or hate it. Please jsut let me know. I love to hear what people think of my stories.

----

"_It has always fallen to a few, to sacrifice for the good of many."_

----

"Aunt Keeva!" Keeva looked down at her niece with a smile, and knelt down next to the little five year old girl so she was eye level with her.

"What is it Catrina?" The young woman's Irish accent was plainly audible, even when she spoke softly.

"There's some men in a car across the street." She said. Keeva raised her eyebrow.

"Did ya tell Mommy about that?" The little girl shook her head.

"You're the first one I found."

"Which car is it?" She asked, glancing up at the small suburban street.

"The black one." She said, and Keeva immediately saw which one the girl meant. It was black, American made and had dark tinted windows. She wet her lips nervously.

"Where's Braden?" She asked, naming the girl's elder brother. He was fifteen, and tended to get stupid ideas in his head. Like going over and talking to the two men sitting in the car across the street, who, Keeva was sure, would not take too kindly to that.

"In the backyard." She said with a grin. "He's in trouble." With a sigh, Keeva stood and curled her fingers around the little girl's hand.

"Well, why don't we go talk to them?" She asked. Catrina grinned, and started running, making her Aunt run with her. It wasn't that hard to keep up, considering that her strides took nearly two of every the little girl's steps. When they reached the backyard, they found the girl's father and mother with angry looks, talking to the fifteen year old boy, who was glaring at them. Keeva paused, and leaned down to Catrina's height.

"Why don't you run on inside and make some lemonade?" She asked, a gentle smile on her face. "Then we can make some ice pops after I talk with your Mommy."

"Okay!" The girl tore into the house, and Keeva laughed, smothering it as she walked up to the two fuming parents. Keeva lay a hand on her sister's shoulder.

"Brigh?" She asked. Her older sister turned her emerald eyes on Keeva. Over a decade separated the two, but they were close. "What happened?" She directed the question at her nephew. John, her brother-in-law, threw his hands up.

"I don't know what we're going to do with you!" He exclaimed. Braden's dark hazel eyes darkened even further.

"Kee? Ya think ya could give John and I a minute?" Brigh asked, grabbing hold of her husband's arm, and dragging him off. Keeva eyed her nephew.

"What'd ya do this time?" She asked. He sighed.

"I asked to go to a party tonight. It's Friday, and I didn't think they'd have a problem with it." He replied, his voice heavy and slightly sad.

"Okay, but you're fifteen. Who were ya going to get a ride from?"

"Um. . ." He didn't have an answer. She smiled. "I hadn't thought that far." His eyes suddenly lit up. "Hey! You could take me!" Keeva froze.

"What?"

"I mean, you're pretty young, and you're cool! See, my friend's band is playing tonight at this club downtown, and I can get in, I just can't get there!"

"Okay. . ." She trailed off, thinking.

"Great!" He threw his arms around her, just as Brigh walked back over. "Aunt Keeva said she'd take me!"

"N-no I didn't!" She protested, but Brigh's smile widened.

"I think that would be great!" She said, and smiled in response to her sister's glare. "Calm down! I know the club he's talking about. Susan's son works there. He said that it's a great mix of adults. Trust me, you won't be the oldest one there."

"B-but-"

"Plus, John is taking Catrina over to her friend's house, so I'd _finally_ get some peace and quiet." She said, and Keeva couldn't resist the begging look in her older sister's eyes.

"Fine! Okay, okay! You win!" She threw her hands up, and Catrina's head appeared in the back door.

"Aunt Keeva!" She called. "The lemonade's done!" She ran out and grabbed the woman's hand, dragging her inside.

----

Keeva pulled her coat tighter around herself and glared at her nephew. After coming downstairs, he saw her outfit, and demanded that she go back upstairs and change, insisting he'd disown her if she wore a T-shirt and jeans to the club. Shaking her head, Keeva produced her ID for the bouncer, and so did Braden. Except his said he was eighteen. She smirked as the bouncer looked him over, then turned to Keeva.

"Is he eighteen?" He asked. She swallowed her grin and nodded.

"Aye." She replied. "Can we go in? It's freezin' out here." The bouncer nodded and allowed them inside. As they made their way through the crowd, Keeva smacked her nephew on the back of the head. "You could've told me you had a fake ID!" She hissed in his ear. He grinned at her.

"I could have, but would you have let me come?"

"Yes! And I wouldn't have told your mother either! Now I have half a mind to!" Braden rolled his eyes.

"Have a drink! Maybe you'll calm down!" She glared at him, but stalked off to the bar anyway. He'd get his eventually.

----

"Conn, please explain to me what the fuck we're doin' here?" Murphy asked, jumping a little bit to keep warm.

"Because! I figured it'd be a nice change from McGinty's." He replied, sounding as though it were _the_ most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah, well I'm fuckin' freezin' my ass off." He said.

"Ah, what'd you give now for some rope. Maybe draggin it around'd keep ya warm." Murphy smacked his brother as they produced IDs for the bouncer. After getting in, Murphy was even more annoyed with Conner. His twin may have enjoyed places like this, because he could dance. Murphy was just going to get himself plastered.

After making his way over to the bar, he saw a young woman, only a couple years younger than himself holding an almost empty beer. He eyed her. She was pretty enough. He'd seen more beautiful women in his time, but there was something about her that just held him where he was. She had dark hair, almost the color of his own, but her eyes where the color of sparkling aquamarine crystals. Pale freckles were splashed across her equally pale face, which reminded him of so many girl in his homeland. Her eyes lifted from the crowd to him, and a smirk twisted her pale lips upward.

"Can I help you with somethin'?" Murphy was stunned into silence for a moment by the thickness of her accent. His eyebrow raised, and a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth.

"No, just admiring the Irish beauty." He said. The smirk widened into a soft smile as she heard his accent. "Reminds me o' home." She grinned, a slight blush creeping up her neck. It was endearing.

"Well, it's nice to meet you. . ."

"Murphy." He supplied quickly, and extended his hand.

"Keeva." She replied, shaking it.

"Can I buy ya another beer?" He asked. She shrugged, and downed the last of it with a smile.

"Just one more." She replied. "I've got to fuckin' drive tonight." He nodded, left, and returned a moment later with two bottles of open beer, and sat down next to her.

"You drove?" He asked. She nodded, taking a sip of beer.

"My nephew knows someone in the band." She replied. "And his mother wouldn't let him come unless someone drove him. . ." She sighed, raking a hand through her hair. "So I got fuckin' volunteered." She wasn't sure why she was so comfortable talking to this man, she didn't even know his last name.

"Well, would you be upset if I said I was glad you got volunteered?"

"That's a cheesy line." A commotion on the dance floor drew their attention to a group of boys surrounding a younger-looking on.

"Fuck! Brigh's goin' ta kill me!" Keeva shot to her feet and shouldered her way to the center of the group. She didn't notice Murphy following her. "Braden!" The boy in the center looked up and saw her coming. He paled.

Trailing behind her, Murphy could now see her outfit, which made him think completely un-catholic-like thoughts. He smacked himself.

She was wearing a pair of tight jeans that hugged her body perfectly, the ends shoved into knee-high black boots. Her black halter top didn't exactly cover all that much of her back, and dipped quite low. She obviously wasn't wearing a bra. He shook his head, pausing at the edge of the ring of boys as she walked straight into it, and took hold of the boy's arm.

"Come on." She said, and tried to drag him off. One of the boys in the circle pushed her back, causing her to stumble and let go of the boy's arm.

"Aw, your Mommy come to rescue you?" He sneered. Keeva's liquid blue eyes darkened and flashed.

"Do I look old enough to be _his_ fuckin' mother?" She asked. "Open your fuckin' eyes kid." Her accent had thickened with her anger.

"Aunt Keeva. . ." Braden said. "I wouldn't start with these guys. . ." She glanced at Murphy, and a small bit of surprise and something else flickering in her eyes before she looked back at the boy who had pushed her.

"Your Aunt, huh?" He stepped forward, and circled Keeva. Murphy shifted, and was not surprised to see Conner standing on the other side of the circle.

Conner caught his twin's eyes, and sighed. He saw it at a glance. This girl had invoked Murphy's feeling of protectiveness. He sighed.

"Well, your Aunt can stay. You can go fuck off." Murphy started to step in, but within a few seconds, he could see that there was obviously no need.

The boy who'd been talking to her reached out and grabbed her ass. She whipped around, slamming her elbow straight into his nose. He let out a howl and fell back on top of one of his buddies, his nose spurting blood. One of his other buddies lunged forward and grabbed her from behind. Murphy almost lunged in, but she snapped her head back. The kid let go immediately, and she spun on her heel, slamming her knee into the kid's gut. Before anyone else could grab her, she grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him into the crowd. Murphy saw she was heading in the direction of the table they'd been sitting at. He reached the table as she was speaking sternly to the boy.

"What the fuck was that?" She demanded, yanking her coat off the chair. "Do you know what your mother would say?"

"You can't tell her! You'll be in as much trouble as me!"

"She may be my older sister, but that doesn't mean she scares me!"

"I know for a fact that she does!"

"Shut up Braden!"

"You shut up!"

"Braden, so help me, keep this up, and you'll really regret it! I can take my sister! I've been doing it all my life!" Her eyes lifted from her nephew to Murphy, and she glared back at Braden as she pulled on her coat. She took a step so she was slightly closer to Murphy.

"Sorry." She said. "I was having a nice talk with a nice Irish guy, and my nephew ruins it." She smiled. "I'll see you around?"

"Definitely will try." He said with a small smile. She nodded, and turned, her glare setting itself back into place as she grabbed her nephew's arm.

"Now come on!"

----

"You _can't _tell Mom!" Keeva just shook her head as she pulled into their driveway, and grabbed her purse as she cut the engine. "Please!" Keeva sat back in her seat, then looked over at her nephew with a sigh.

"I'll think abou' it." But she couldn't help the smile twitching at the corners of her mouth. Braden rolled his eyes, and got out of the car as John and Catrina pulled into the driveway.

"Hey, you guys're back early." He said. Keeva shrugged.

"We had some difficulties, and decided ta split. She turned around, and Braden grabbed her arm.

"You've got something in your hair." He muttered in her ear. Keeva's eyes widened, and she reached back, feeling the dried blood from the boys' noses in her hair. She smirked at him.

"See? This is what you get for making me change." She replied with a smirk as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. John sighed as he gathered the half-asleep Catrina from the back seat. He grinned at the two of them.

"Ah, conspiring against us all now?" Keeva fished her keys out of her pocket as Catrina woke up. "Sometimes I feel like Brigh and I have three kids instead of two." Catrina held out her arms to Keeva, who glanced at John, who was grinning as he handed his daughter off. "Then, there are other times when I'm glad you're around to keep us all sane." Keeva shook her head, and turned to walk up the front steps, but Braden was blocking the way.

"A-Aunt Keeva?" His voice was shaking. "T-The door's open." Keeva stuck her head around the boy to see that the door was indeed open. Wide open. She turned back to John and handed him her purse.

"Call 9-1-1." She said. "It might be nothing."

"But it could be something?" John pulled her cell phone out of her purse as his sister-in-law handed his daughter to Braden.

"Right. Stay here." She directed the last part at all three of them.

"No! Aunt Keeva!" Catrina called loudly. Keeva turned and shot a look at Braden, who moved back down the steps toward the car.

"She'll be fine. Aunt Keeva can take on anyone." He assured the girl softly, though he certainly didn't sound sure. "I bet Mom just forgot to close the door."

Tuning out John on the phone with the 911 dispatch and the kid's chatter, she slipped into the dark interior. Something felt off. That's when she heard the glass crunching under her boot. She swallowed, and patted along the wall for the light switch. Her hand found it on the second pat, and flicked in on. Nothing happened. Exactly as she'd expected. The dread in the pit of her stomach was growing with each passing second. She saw the flashing blue lights through the door, and heard John's shout.

"Keeva! The police are here!" She ducked back outside, and walked straight up to the officers.

"The front hall light bulb must have been broken." She said. 'There's some sort of glass on the floor, and the light won't turn on." The two patrol officers just nodded, pulled out their flashlights and went inside. Catrina was whimpering in her brother's arms, and John was looking incredibly pale. When the officers were inside, he turned to Keeva.

"Do you think this has anything to do with. . ." He trailed off, as though unable to speak the words he needed to. Keeva chewed on her lips, shaking her head.

"We can't know anything right now." She replied. "I don't know if-"

"Miss?" She turned to look at the officers. "Could you come in here please?" Keeva gave John's shoulder a squeeze, then hurried up the steps to the officers.

"What do you need?" Her accent was thicker with her fear.

"We don't know." She choked on nothing.

"What?" The first officer lead her through the kitchen and into the living room. He shined the flashlight on the wall, and Keeva's stomach twisted.

"Oh God." She fumbled for the light switch, and the room was suddenly flooded in light. In red paint, the word _Treason_ was painted on the wall in red.

"You know what this means?" Of course she did. She'd thought they were safe. Obviously not.

"Is, is that blood?" She asked, and scurried over to the far wall. She leaned forward and smelled paint. "Paint." She muttered, incredibly relieved.

"Miss. . ."

"Dolan." She supplied, and shook her head, backing away from the wall. "I have no idea." It was a lie, but they didn't need to know it. If they did, it could tear the kids apart. Especially Braden.

"The house is owned by-"

"Me brother-in-law. John Clark." She swallowed. "They needed help with their kids. . ." She trailed off, and the officers nodded, apparently satisfied with her shocked act.

"Do you have anywhere you can stay?" She bit her lip, and shrugged.

"I'll have to ask John." She said, and left the house, hugging herself. She glanced up at John's worried face, and nodded. He nearly collapsed on the ground, but she gripped his arm.

"We've cleared the house. There's no one in there. We did find this." The second officer held up a note. "It's addressed to Keeva Aslinn Dolan." Keeva set her jaw, and took the paper. She unfolded it, and her eyes blazed. It was almost as though she were willing her glare to set the paper on fire.

_550,000. One Week._

_-B.Y._

"Mind telling us who B.Y. Is Miss Dolan?" Keeva swallowed, and looked at John before biting her lip.

"I have no idea." She said, looking back at the officers.

"Okay. But you're going to need to find somewhere to stay. This is an official crime scene."

----

Tell me waht you think, and be honest. She'll meet up with the brothers again soon.


	2. Chapter 2

----

_"It's only in the face of horror that you truly find your noblest selves. And you can be so noble." _

_-Gabriel, _Constantine.

----

They stayed in a hotel downtown that night. Catrina was asleep in Keeva's arms by the time they got to the car, and when they got up to the suite, she was immediately put to bed. John disappeared into one of the three bedrooms and locked the door. Braden and Keeva stayed in the main room, watching the late night news.

"Aunt Keeva?" She glanced over at him.

"What?"

"Was Mom. . ." Keeva chewed on her lip nervously. "Was she kidnapped?"

His Aunt sighed. "Ya want the truth or a honey-coated lie?" He hesitated for a moment.

"Can I have the honey coated truth?" She gave him a gentle smile.

"Sure." She said, and leaned back in the sofa. She had to be worried about her phrasing here. "I think she was." Braden's face fell. "But-" He looked back up at her, hazel eyed dark and expectant. "-I think I know why."

"You do? But you told the police-"

"Aye. I know what I told tha police. Exactly what they needed ta hear. They can't help us."

"Then who can? Why's Mom gone?" Keeva sighed, pulling her hand through her hair. This was going to take some major sugar-coating.

"When your mom was younger, about twenty years ago, our parents died." Braden nodded. This he knew. "She was already living here, on a student visa from Ireland." He nodded again. He'd heard this before. "She was twenty, and she suddenly had this eight year old kid to take care of." She sighed. "So, your Mom did what she could, and. . ." She bit her lip. She seemed to be doing that a lot tonight. We were tight for money, and she was working two jobs while trying to still go to school." She shook her head. "She fell in with some bad people, because she could get money. After she realized just how bad they were, she moved to California and sent me to live with our Aunt Aine in Ireland. I stayed there until I was seventeen, then came back to help her and your father with you." She tapped him on the nose and he glared at her. She dissolved into giggles at the look on his face and fell off the sofa. Braden rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to bed." He said. "G'night doofus." As soon as he'd disappeared into the room that already held his sleeping sister, she stopped giggling. She bit her lip and thought about the note. Bengino Yakavetta had taken over for Papa Joe after the Saints had taken him out in the trial. She had to admire them. They risked their lives to take a preemptive strike against the different crime syndicates.

"_It was a fateful day for the leader of the Russian crime syndicate here in Boston today." _A reporter said on the TV screen. Keeva's attention snapped to it. _"The vigilantes known as the saints took out six armed men before putting three bullets in the head of Mr. Fillip Markovic."_ Keeva shuddered and picked up the remote, clicking off the TV.

Over the past few months, since Yakavetta's trial, she and her sister had thought they were safe from the Italian Mafia.

Guess they were wrong.

----

The sound of her door opening woke her up. She shot upright in bed, her shock fading away as the short outline of a girl stood in the light spilling in from the hall. She sighed heavily.

"Come on in Catrina." She murmured quietly. The girl slid into the room and shut the door behind her. She padded across the plush carpet and stopped at Keeva's bedside. "What's wrong honey?" She asked. The girl sniffled as though she'd been crying.

"I had a bad dream." She said. "Braden wouldn't wake up, and Daddy's door is locked." She sniffed again. "Is he mad at me?"

"Mad at cha? Why would he be mad at _you_?" The girl shrugged, and hugged something in her arms tighter. Keeva felt a sad smile tug at her mouth and heart as she saw it was the large blue bunny that had been given to the girl for her third birthday. She reached out and patted the bunny's head. "You know how you like to hold Captain Flop?" She asked, naming the large blue rabbit in her hands. Catrina nodded. "Well, Daddy likes to hold Mommy when he sleeps, and he's feeling as lost as you do without Captain Flop." Catrina nodded, and Keeva tossed back the edge of the covers on her bed. She patted the pillow as she scooted over to the other side of the double bed. "Well? Come on." Catrina climbed up, and was asleep within minutes.

----

"Dad!" Braden's fear-filled shout woke Keeva from her light slumber, and she hopped out of bed, dashing into the hall. "Aunt Keeva!" She found Braden, his face filled with fear, clutching the doorway.

"What?" Keeva asked blearily as John appeared from the other end of the small hallway.

"What is it Braden?" John yawned.

"Catrina! She's not in her bed!" John suddenly looked wide awake.

"I know." Both men looked at her sharply. "She's in mine." Braden collapsed on the floor in relief, and John grabbed onto Keeva for support.

"I can't do this!" He said quietly, as though it had just hit him.

"Braden, go get your sister breakfast." Keeva instructed. He nodded and vanished into Keeva's room as she dragged John back into his. She dropped him on his bed.

"Pull yourself together!" She exclaimed, shutting the door a little harder than necessary. He stared at her in shock.

"What?"

"Do you think for one minute that Brigh would want you to act like this!" She asked. "You've got to be here for your kids! I know it's hard, but you need to make them believe she's coming back!"

"Why!" John asked. "She's not going to! You said so yourself! This is related to the Yakavettas! I _knew_ you two would never be done with that!"

"_I_ was never part of it!" Keeva shouted back. "I just had to clean up after her, like always! I'm _never_ going to have to stop doing that!" John looked like he'd been slapped. "So don't go blaming me for what happened! It's _because_ of me that you and your family have been safe this long!" She took a deep breath, then continued, softer this time, her accent thicker than when she was yelling. "And _ye _need to be here for yer kids, because I'm not going to be."

"What!"

"I'm going to get my sister back." She said firmly.

"But we don't have that kind of money!"

"I know. We're not paying them."

"Then-"

"I'm going to find her, and we're going to leave the same way we did the first time."

"What do I tell the kids?"

"That I'm trying to find their mother."

----

Smecker looked up at the Chief of Police as he walked into his office and sighed. This couldn't be good. The last time that man had walked into his office, he'd met the MacManus men. Not that it wasn't a good thing, he just felt like he'd aged ten years, when it had only been about a year. It was taking its toll on him.

"What've we got?" He asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"A woman was kidnapped from her home last night. Husband and kids didn't see anything. The daughter and husband were out, and the woman's sister took the boy to a party. She was gone when they got home."

"How is this mob-related?"

"The woman and her sister were federal witnesses in the case against Papa Joe Yakavetta." Smecker groaned lightly and pulled a hand through his hair.

"What's her name?"

"Brigh Clark." Smecker frowned. He remembered the woman, but more to the point, he remembered her sister. Over ten years separated the two women, and he had clearly seen which was the stronger one. He thought back to the women's testimony at the trial. Though Brigh's was the most important, her sister's had been the most memorable.

----

"_You said you escaped his hold. How was that accomplished?" The District Attorney asked. Brigh swallowed and looked down at her hands. _

"_I told my sister." She said. "I didn't know what to do."_

"_And your sister is. . ."_

"_Keeva Dolan." She replied. _

"_Is she in the courtroom right now?" Brigh shook her head. _

"_No. She's being called as a witness next." The attorney nodded. _

"_And what did your sister do?" _

"_She got into a shouting match with Yakavetta." She replied. "She told him I was through with him, and wasn't going to be working for him anymore." _

"_And how old was she at this time?" _

"_Seventeen." _

"_So, your seventeen year old sister threatened Mr. Yakavetta?"_

"_In a manner of speaking." _

"_How so?" _

"_Well, she told him that if he ever came after us, we had enough evidence to go to the DA's office and have charges filed against him." She bit her lip. _

"_What happened next?" _

"_Well, we walked out of his office, and one of his men tied to stop us." _

"_You said tried. You managed to get out?" Brigh allowed herself a small smile. _

"_Aye. After our parents died, and my sister went to live with our Aunt, she insisted on taking every form of martial art she could find. She a black belt." Brigh swallowed. "So when this guy tried to stop us, she just knocked him out. Then she told me to get out, and turned back to Yakavetta." She chewed on her lip. _

"_Do you know what she said to Mr. Yakavetta?"_

_She shook her head. "No. I went out to her car and just waited." _

"_How long was it before she came out?"_

"_A couple of minutes." The woman replied. "It wasn't long." _

"_No further questions." _

----

_There was an immediate and recognizable difference between the sisters. The first was their appearance. Though the shape of their faces were extremely similar, Keeva had a dark, radiant beauty about her, completely different than the innocent elegance of her elder sister. As she walked down the aisle and up to the stand, her grace was noticeable, in the sway of her hips, the way she stepped, the way she walked. It all screamed ballet, as though every move she made was a dance. _

_But that wasn't the first thing Smecker had noticed about her, even when he'd interviewed her five years before, when she brought her sister into the FBI office, dragging the redhead behind her. _

_It had been her eyes. Blue, deep and piercing, they could make anyone back off with just an icy look. _

_That was the one she sent over at Papa Joe as she strode past his table. Smecker could swear he saw the man recoil briefly before recovering. _

_She stepped up to the stand, an impressive figure. Tall, willowy and graceful, even in knee-high black boots over a pair of tight, faded jeans and a tight black tank top under an open green sweatshirt one could see the hidden power of her tone form. _

_She was sworn in, and the prosecution went first. _

"_Could you tell the court why you're here?"_

"_I've been called as a witness." She said, leaning back in her chair. There was an easy confidence about her, a charisma that just seemed to draw all the eyes in the room to her. _

"_And why were you called?"_

"_Because of my sister." She replied. _

"_And your sister is?" _

"_Brigh Muadhnait Clark." _

"_Thank you." _

"_No problem." _

"_Miss Dolan."_

"Aye_?" _

"_Your sister was involved with the Mafia?"_

"_Objection!" The defense attorney stood swiftly. "Your honor, the Prosecution has yet to prove that my client is, in fact in the Mafia." _

_The judge sighed heavily, turning his dark eyes on the DA "Please restate the question."_

"_Miss Dolan, your sister worked for Mr. Yakavetta, right?"_

"_Yes." _

"_And what did she do for Mr. Yakavetta?"_

"_Some bookkeeping." She replied. _

"_And when she wanted to quit working for Mr. Yakavetta?"_

"_He wouldn't let her. He told her that-"_

"_Objection!" The defense stood up again. "Hearsay?" The judge grimaced, but nodded at the DA_

"_Please refrain from that line of questioning." It was obvious that he didn't like the defense attorney, but he had no choice but to give in when the defense had a valid objection. _

_The DA sighed, obviously no more happy with it than the judge was. He set his jaw, and turned back to Keeva. "When did you become aware of your sister's situation?" Keeva sighed. _

"_When she came back to Ireland for my graduation."_

"_And what happened?" _

"_John talked ta me."_

"_And who is this John?"_

"_Jonathan Clark." She replied. "My brother-in-law." _

"_And what did he tell you?" _

"_That Brigh had been actin' strange an' jumpy lately. He wanted me ta see if I could find out what was wrong with her."_

"_And did you?" _

"_Aye." _

"_And what did she tell you?"_

"_That she had tried to quit her job. She'd gotten a better offer somewhere else." Keeva's eyes locked with Papa Joe's. "But she told me that her boss wouldn't let her."_

"_And who was her boss?"_

"_Joe Yakavetta."_

"_That doesn't explain why she was 'acting strange and jumpy'." _

"_Well, after a little bit o' coaxing, she told me that when she'd tried to quit, Mr. Yakavetta had told her that if she tried to quit, she and her family would regret it." _

"_Those were his exact words?"_

"_I can't be sure, but that's what she told me." She replied quickly as the defense began to object. _

"_And what did you do?" _

"_I went in ta work with her tha next day." She said. "The two of us talked ta him, and I told him that if he ever came after my sister or her family, Brigh and I had enough evidence to have the DA file charges against him."_

"_Thank you." The DA addressed the rest of the court. "No more questions." He glared at the defense. "Your witness." The defense attorney got to his feet, and sauntered over to the witness stand, a little swagger in his step that seemed out of place. _

"_Miss Dolan."_

"_Yes?"_

"_Your sister testified that one of my client's employees tried to prevent you from leaving after your little 'chat'." He made air quotes with his fingers. _

"_Aye."_

"_And that after disarming this man, you made her go out to the car and wait for you."_

"_Aye." _

"_And that you came out a couple of minutes later." _

"_Aye." _

"_Would you tell the court what you said to my client?" _

"_No." There was a murmur that ran through the courtroom, and the defense attorney smiled toothily at her. Smecker shifted in his seat, his gaze fixed on the young woman. The DA looked shocked. _

"_And why not?" Keeva didn't answer. "Is it because you're afraid we could charge you with assault?" Keeva stared evenly back at the man in front of her. _

"_No. I never laid a finger on the man." _

"_But you did shoot at him." Keeva didn't answer. "Miss Dolan?" The defense looked to the judge, who groaned. _

"_Miss Dolan, answer the question please." She met the judge's eyes evenly. "Please Miss Dolan, I don't want to have to hold you in contempt." She looked back at the attorney. _

"_Did you fire on my client?" _

"_Not exactly."_

"_Then how exactly?" _

"_He pulled a gun on me."_

"_And you already had one?"_

"_Aye. So I shot the gun out o' his hand." _

"_You could have killed my client."_

"_If you want to charge me fer defendin' meself sir, then go ahead. I don't think you'll get too far." The defense glared at her, but she wasn't looking at him. She had locked her glare on Joe Yakavetta whose face had paled slightly. Smecker couldn't help but wonder what this woman had done to make him so afraid of her. _

----

Smecker shook his head. "Looks like the Yakavettas finally caught up with her."

----

I Love and thank all reviewers!


	3. Chapter 3

Murphy looked up from the TV as Smecker walked in.

"What the fuck happened to knockin'?" He asked. Smecker rolled his eyes, and sighed.

"Where's your brother?"

"Kitchen!" Conner called, and walked into the room, beer in hand. "Why?"

"Got a job for you boys." Smecker said. Murphy grinned, getting to his feet.

"What the fuck is it then?" He asked. "We need somethin' ta do!" Conner shook his head, taking a sip of beer.

"There's a woman." Murphy's face darkened. "She had some ties to the Yakavetta family, but her sister got her out about six years back. But that's not the point. She went missing two days ago."

"Okay. . . So what the fuck're we supposed ta do?" Murphy asked. "We're not the fuckin' police." He smirked, raising his eyebrows and pointing at Smecker. "That's yer job." Smecker rolled his eyes.

"Okay. Point fucking taken. Now what's worrying me is the sister. The day after her sister was kidnapped, she vanished."

"What d'ya mean, vanished?" Conner asked, sitting down on the sofa where Murphy had been.

"The husband said he didn't know where she went. He just knows that she said good-bye to the kids and took off to try and find her sister."

"Wait, the sister has kids?"

"No, the sister lives with them and helps with the kids."

"Ah." Murphy sat down next to his twin.

"Right."

"So what the fuck're we supposed to do again?" Conner asked. This was how it always was. Conner was the one who spoke more and was impulsive. Murphy followed him, asking about the details and reacting to Conner.

"I found out where she's being held, but I can't do a fucking thing about it."

"She sister or the missing woman?"

"The missing woman. Her name's Brigh." That name tugged on something in Murphy's memory, but he shrugged it off. "Her sister's twelve years younger than her, but acts like the older sister. She's probably getting close. I need you guys to get into this warehouse. Bengino Yakavetta - he took over after Papa Joe - his number one man should be there." Conner nodded as Smecker handed him a file folder. "Here's all the info you need."

"What if we need more?" Murphy asked. Smecker rolled his eyes.

"That's all I've fucking got." He informed the dark haired twin. "And be thankful I've even got that." While the two of them bickered for several more minutes, Conner looked over the papers in the folder.

"Murph, we've got plenty here. He's even got us the original blueprints o' the place."

"Now I'll warn you, they've done some remodeling since then, but that's the basic layout. I've got to get back, my lunch break's almost fucking over." He gave the boys a nod, then left.

---

Keeva bit her lip as she was walked straight up to the building, the grip on her arms tight. She was walked straight through the front of the warehouse, and into the room where Bengino Yakavetta's right hand man sat, smirking at her.

"Playing fucking army now are we?" He asked, his Italian accent thick to the point where she almost couldn't understand him. Keeva glared at him. She remembered seeing him in Yakavetta's office the day she'd pulled her sister out.

"No, I'm a Navy fuckin' S.E.A.L." She retorted. "You fuckin' _cagna_."

"I am Gulio Maestri! You cannot speak to me like that!"

"I'll speak to you however I fuckin' want you figlio di puttana!" She protested, struggling against the two rather large men holding her arms. They showed no signs that her struggling was even making them worried. "Where's my fuckin' sister!"

"Your sister?" Gulio asked, a smirk playing over his face. This was fun, toying with this girl. Maybe he'd keep her around.

"Aye! My sister! Ya mother-fucking bastards kidnapped her two days ago! Where tha fuck is she!"

"Oh, her." He laughed. "Ah yes. Well, she's been. . . Moved."

"You know what? Let her the fuck go, and you can have me instead! Just let her go!"

"Now why would be make a bargain like that when we have both of you anyway?" He asked, taking a step closer to her. She used the men holding her to hold her weight, and lashed out with both feet, striking Gulio in the center of the chest. He stumbled back into the desk, and laughed at her. Then he just walked forward again, and dodged her feet, then caught them and pinned them against his side. She twisted, but only managed to nearly pull her arm out of her socket.

"La madre e a donna disordinata e sporca!" She spat. He reached out and flipped the edge of her jacket up to her shoulder, revealing the shoulder holster which held two guns, and the one on each hip.

"What the fuck were you going to do?" He asked. "Kill us all?" She set her jaw and forced a small smile.

"No. Not _you_." She said. "You I was plannin' on beatin' to a bloody fuckin' pulp!" She struggled again, but knew it was useless. She was quick, but brute strength could win over speed once the strong got their hands on the speedy.

"Oh? Well that's nothing compared to what I think I might do to you."

"Go ta hell you mother-fuckin' pig!" A nod from the Gulio and the men let go of her arms. She dropped to the ground, her head making a crack that was even sickening to her ears. Then everything dissolved into chaos.

---

Conner, Murphy and Da were approaching the building when Da stopped, and smacked Murphy on the back of the head. He grimaced, and rubbing the back of his head.

"What tha fuck was that for?" Murphy hissed, thoroughly annoyed.

"Fer not having yer head in the game!" Da admonished. "You can't have your mind elsewhere, or you could get one of us killed!"

"Sorry." Murphy muttered, and slipped behind Conner and Da. He knew his Da was right, but he couldn't help it. Since Conner had dragged him to that club downtown (which they hadn't told their Da about. He would have had a fit about them risking exposure like that.) He couldn't get that woman off of his mind. Keeva. That was her name.

He slid in an open window behind the other two, and slid his silenced gun out of his shoulder holster. Conner and Da were already at the door and moving down the hall. They could hear voices from a room toward the end.

"_I am Gulio Maestri! You cannot speak to me like that!"_ A voice cried out.

"_I'll speak to you however I fuckin' want you figlio di puttana!"_ Murphy choked back a laugh, and heard Conner snort as the woman, whoever she was, called the man a son-of-a-bitch in the man's own language. "Where's my fuckin' sister!" He cursed inwardly. The woman's sister was already here. That could complicate things. Conner smacked him on the arm.

"Stop thinkin' abou' that girl, and get yer fuckin' head straight!" He hissed. Murphy glared at him.

"_Ah yes. Well, she's been. . . Moved."_ The Italian's laugh rang down the hall and sent a shiver down Murphy's spine. He didn't know why.

"I wasn't thinkin' about her!" He hissed back. "Having the woman's sister here could complicate things!"

"_La madre e donna disordinata e sporca!"_ The girl's voice echoed down the hall, and both boys had to clamp their hands over their mouths as the girl called someone's mother a slut.

"_What the fuck were you going to do?"_ The Italian's voice rang out through the hall. _"Kill us all?"_

Murphy and Conner moved in front of Da, waiting for him to open the door.

"_No. Not _you." She said. _"You I was plannin' on beatin' to a bloody fuckin' pulp!_" He had to admit, the girl had guts. He looked through the crack in the door and saw that the woman was being held by two large men, and the man they were after was holding her legs up in the air.

"_Oh? Well that's nothing compared to what I think I might do to you." _Murphy had to restrain himself from jumping into that room right now. The man's voice was slimy, and there was a suggestive hint in his voice that told him that the man didn't mean he was going to kill her.

"Go ta hell you mother-fuckin' pig!" The girl shouted. The Italian boss nodded at the two larger men, who let go of the girl. Her head hit the cement floor with a sickening thud, and Da yanked the door open. Conner took the guard on the left, Murphy shot the one on the right straight into the back of his head, which exploded on the Boss. The girl didn't move as the three of them walked up to their target. Gulio Yakavetta. Conner forced him down on his knees, and all three put their guns to the back of his head.

As one, without needing a signal, the three of them spoke the family prayer as one.

"And shepherds we shall be. For thee my lord, for thee. Power hath descended forth from Thy hand, our feet may swiftly carry out Thy commands. So we shall flow a river forth to Thee, and teeming with souls shall it ever be."

"In Nomeni Patri," Da said.

"Et Fili." As Conner spoke, all three flicked off the safety on the weapons.

"Spiritus Sancti." Murphy finished, and all three pulled the trigger at the same time. By the time Da had holstered his gun, Conner and Murphy were on either side of the woman.

"Well Fuck me!" Conner exclaimed as they stared at Keeva as she lay on the floor. "That's the girl from tha club!" Murphy was silent for a moment, then leaned over her face, holding up a finger.

"How many fingers am I holdin' up?" He asked. She blinked a couple of times, then closed her eyes.

"Fifteen." She sighed and looked up at his annoyed expression. "One." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Murphy? What're you doin' here?"

"Never mind that." He said. "Follow my finger." He moved it back and forth over her face, trying to tell whether or not she had a concussion. She closed her eyes after a minute.

"You're makin' me fuckin' dizzy." She murmured.

"So she doesn't have a fuckin' concussion." Conner said. "Can we get out o' here?"

"We can't just-"

"Bring her with us." Da said, sweeping past them. "Hurry! We must find her sister!"

"Said she's not here." Keeva muttered as Murphy bent to pick her up. "She was fuckin' moved."

"Can you walk?" He asked as Conner moved to the doorway. He slung one of her arms over his shoulder and slipped an arm around her waist. As he let her weight settle back down on the floor, she groaned. Conner turned as she went limp, and jumped to help lift her into his brother's arms bridal-style.

"What happened?" Murphy asked. Conner rolled his eyes.

"I think she passed out." He said sarcastically. Murphy glared at him, pulling her lithe body closer to him as he navigated through the doors and outside.

---

Thanks to those who reviewed! I give you all a virtual cookie!


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I love you all! And I'm glad you guys seem to like Keeva, I had fun writing her.

* * *

Pain.

Pain was good.

It meant she was alive.

Her head felt like a jackhammer was pounding on the back of it. A small groan escaped her lips as she shifted position, making her head throb.

What had happened to her? She remembered being caught as she tried to sneak into the building, and Gulio, and his men. They dropped her, which explained the pain in her head.

Murphy. The Irish man from the club had been there. Why?

"_Spiritus Sancti." _The words floated around in her head, and she remembered them saying a prayer, though she couldn't remember the rest of it. Something warm touched her forehead, and slid down to cup her cheek before disappearing. A familiar smell reached her nose, and she forced her eyes open.

She was on her side, staring at a pair of jeans. Beyond the pair of jeans was a once-beige wall that was now a darker color with peeling paint. Her eyes followed the jeans up to a dark T-Shirt and a pair of blue eyes which shifted down to look at her.

Murphy inhaled some of his coffee when he saw she was awake. He put the mug down on the overturned crate he used as a night stand.

"How're ya feelin'?" He asked. She winced, and he raised an eyebrow. "Sorry." He continued, his voice softer. "You've got ta have a killer headache."

"Ye think?" She asked. Her mind was still trying to figure out why she was here, in his apartment. Why he was even there last night. _"Spiritus Sancti."_ That was important. They had said a prayer before they'd killed Yakavetta. Just like the 'Saints' at Papa Joe's trial.

"Saints." She muttered. Murphy sat down in a chair next to the bed and eyed her.

"What?" She sat up and rubbed the back of her head, and grimaced at the crusty feeling of her hair.

"Yer the fuckin' saints." She said. There was a crash from the other side of the room. She turned - slowly - to see another man de-tangling himself from a chair. She smirked, and he shot an annoyed glare at her. She bit her lip, and dropped her eyes. That glare reminded her of Braden.

"How'd you. . ."

"Figure it out?" She asked, looking back at Murphy. He nodded. "Well, you said a prayer before you whacked the guy, and according to the press, it was three Irish men who took out that bastard Papa Joe." She sighed.

"Well Murph, we've got to make ourselves harder ta find." The man had disentangled himself from the chair and moved over to Murphy's side.

"This is me brother, Conner." He jerked his thumb at the man. Conner nodded.

"I remember ye." He said with a smirk. "Really gave those boys a run fer their fuckin money at that club."

"Right." She rubbed her temples. "I had to get my nephew out of there. My sister would've killed me if anything happened to him. He bruises like a fuckin' peach." Conner extended his hand, holding out two large white pills.

"Fer yer head." He said. Keeva nodded, and grimaced as pain shot through the back of her skull. She reached over, and grabbed Murphy's cup of coffee, and swallowed the pills.

"Hey!" Murphy exclaimed. His brother just laughed. A knock on the door made the three of them look up as Da came into the room.

"He's here. He wants to talk to her."

"Now? She just fuckin' woke up!" Murphy said. Keeva looked back and forth between them.

"Am I supposed to know what yer talkin' about, or did I just hit my head really, really hard?" Keeva asked.

"We have an um, FBI agent helpin' us." Conner said, rubbing the back of his neck. "He keeps us under the radar." Keeva nodded.

"An' he wants ta speak ta ya." Da said. Keeva nodded, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and standing. She swayed a little as her head spun, spots dancing in front of her eyes. Murphy grabbed her arm as she started to fall over.

"Ya okay?" He asked. Her vision cleared, and she nodded. "Okay. Come on." He let go of her arm, and she started to sway. She grabbed hold of Murphy's arm, and he eyed her, concerned.

"Ye sure yer all righ'?" He asked. She nodded, and let go of him, following them into the outer room. Her eyes widened as they landed on the man standing in the middle of the room.

"Agent Smecker?" He turned, his jaw set.

"Are you crazy?" He snapped. The three MacManus men looked back and forth between the two. "You could have been _killed! _Or worse!"

"Excuse me if I wanted Catrina and Braden to-"

"I don't give a shit what you _wanted_!" Smecker was more furious than any of the MacManus men had ever seen him. "Your sister got herself into this-"

"But her kids didn't! They _need_ their mother! I can't replace her! I'm not her, and I can _never_ be her! I am not fuckin' mother material! I am the fun Aunt that gets them into fuckin' trouble, and then out of it again!" She bit her lip, waiting for Smecker's response.

"Keeva, let the police handle this." She set her jaw, ignoring the throbbing pain in her head that was growing steadily worse.

"I can't." She said, her voice so soft they had to strain to hear her. She bit her lip. "I thought after the trial that we were fuckin' done with 'em." She took a deep breath, and met the Agent's eyes. "It's my fuckin' fault Paul." She said as the world spun slightly. The Agent's face softened, and his jaw relaxed. "I didn't get her out far enough."

"Keeva, it's not your fault. Nothing that happened was your fault. What you did back then was stupid. Very stupid."

"It was the only thing I could do." She said. The world was spinning again. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The world steadied beneath her and she opened her eyes again. "She had Braden to worry about then. The Yakavettas would have come after him, and John. I couldn't let that fuckin' happen."

"What the fuck're you guys talkin' about?" Murphy asked.

"An' what the fuck d'ya have ta do with the Yakavettas?" Conner finished for him. Keeva took a deep breath, as the world began spinning again. She reached out her arm, trying to grab one of the brothers. Both of them lunged forward, grabbing her before she could fall over.

"Ya should prob'ly sit down." Conner said, and the two of them helped her over to the sofa. She collapsed into the worn fabric, and closed her eyes. Smecker shoved the two of them out of the way and grabbed her head, thrusting it between her knees.

"Breathe Kiddo." He said, squatting in front of her. As he lifted his hand, he felt the dried blood, and looked up at the men.

"Got dropped on 'er head last night." Conner explained quickly.

"Not by us though." Murphy assured him.

"Hurts like a bitch." Keeva muttered. Smecker sighed, sitting down on the small table in front of her. Conner and Murphy had collapsed into the sofa on either side of her.

"Look Kiddo." He said, his voice more gentle this time. "I'm sorry I yelled at you, but they're going to come after you now. You can't go back to your family, not for a while."

"Her family?" Murphy asked, raising an eyebrow at her. She shook her head slowly, her eyes fixed on the scuffed wooden floor.

"My brother-in-law and his kids." She explained, rubbing her head gingerly. "I can't put them in danger like that."

"I think it's best if she stays here." Smecker said, glancing at the two boys. "If that's all right with you." Conner shrugged, and glanced at Murphy, who made no movement other than meeting his brother's eyes.

"She can stay." He replied after a moment. "But she's goin' ta need some o' her own stuff." He flashed her a grin. "She's too scrawny to fit into our clothes." Keeva smacked him in the shoulder, shaking her head.

"Then we've got to go to my sister's house." She said. Smecker sighed heavily, and pulled a hand down his face.

"Keeva-"

"If yer tellin' me to let one o' them go, John'll prob'ly shoot 'em on the fuckin' spot." She said. Both boys shifted uncomfortably next to her.

"Oh? And were the fuck would he get the gun?" Smecker asked, tilting his head a little to the side. Keeva made a face at him.

"My room." She said. "He knows where I keep it."

"Okay. But one of them's going with you."

* * *

"So, how're you mixed up with the Yakavettas again?" Murphy asked as Keeva rooted around in her pockets for her keys. They were standing on the porch of a clean-cut suburban house, Murphy leaning against the wall next to the door, his legs crossed at his ankles.

Keeva muttered a string of curses in several different languages, and punched the doorbell. There was a muffled thump from inside the house, and she sighed heavily.

"It's Keeva!" She called. "John! I can't find my damn keys! Open the door!" The door swung open to reveal a tall, slim man about forty. He had shaggy, sandy-blond hair that fell into his eyes.

"Kee? What-" A flying body slammed into the woman, knocking her to the ground.

"Catrina! Get off of her! What's-"

"No! She's back!" The little girl cried, burying her head in Keeva's shoulder. "She's back! She's back! She's back!"

"Murph!" Smirking, Murphy gently lifted the girl off of Keeva, and helped her to her feet.

"Y'okay?" He asked. "Hit yer head again?" She shook her head.

"Who're you?" Murphy looked down at the little girl who was tugging on his pants, then glared at Keeva, who was trying unsuccessfully to smother her laughter.

"Shut up." He said. Keeva took the girl's hands, and squatted down to her level.

"Catrina, this is my friend Murphy." She said. "Now, I'm going to have to stay away for a while." The girl's bottom lip began to stick out, and Murphy couldn't help a small smile.

"But you can't!" She protested. Keeva swung the girl up into her arms.

"Honey, I have to." She slipped inside, and motioned Murphy to follow her. He shut the door behind him. Murphy eyed the little girl, and felt a pang at how much she looked like Keeva.

"But you can't!" She protested as Keeva made her way up the stairs, the girl still in her arms. That left Murphy alone in the hall with John, who was eyeing him warily.

"I'm John." He said after a long moment, extending his hand to him.

"Murphy." He replied.

"Can you tell me what's going on?" Murphy sighed, shaking his head.

"Honestly, I'm not too sure, meself." He said.

"But your helping her find Brigh right?" He asked. "You _can_ help her?" Murphy met the man's eyes.

"Yer her brother-in-law, right?" John nodded, and swallowed heavily. "Well, we're goin' ta try as hard as we can ta find her. We've got help from one of the best cops in tha city working on this case."

"Oh yeah? Who?"

"Paul Smecker. Brilliant man." A smile crossed John's face.

"I remember him."

"John! Would you come get your daughter! I can't move!" Snorting as he bit back a laugh, John headed up the stairs, Murphy following. The two men found Keeva in her room, Catrina wrapped around her upper body. Murphy put a hand over his mouth, trying to hide his smile. John didn't even try.

"No! Aunt Keeva you can't go! You can't go!" Keeva looked up at the two men, biting her lip.

"Honey, I've got to go." She said. "I've got to find your Mommy." That silenced John, and Murphy's laughed died on his lips at the sudden sadness in the room. John stepped forward, and pried the little girl off of Keeva.

"I know you." Murphy turned to look at the young man behind him.

"You must be Braden." He said. The boy nodded. "You should watch who ya pick fights with." Keeva's hand smacked him in the back of the head, and Murphy glared at her.

"What was that fer?" He asked.

"Yer not one ta talk about pickin' fights." She said meaningfully. With nothing to say to that, Murphy fell silent. John handed Catrina to his son.

"Take her downstairs, would you? I need a minute with your Aunt." Braden nodded, and took his sister down. Keeva eyed John, then turned to Murphy.

"I don't mean to be rude, but. . ."

He held up a hand. "I'll be downstairs."

He heard the kids in the kitchen, and decided to check on them. Catrina was trying to get away from her brother. "I want Aunt Keeva!" She cried, beating her small fists against her brother's chest. He flinched with each hit. "Let me go!"

"Cat! Calm down! She'll be right back!"

"No she won't! She said she was leaving! Ask him!" She pointed at Murphy, whose eyes widened. Braden met his surprised stare coldly.

"She's leaving too?"

"Too?" Murphy asked.

"Like my Mom."

"Your Mum didn't leave by choice." Murphy said, waving a finger at Braden.

"My Aunt said she got in with some bad people when she was younger. That's why she's gone now." Murphy bit his lip.

"Aye, that's true." He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes falling onto the sobbing girl in the boy's lap.

"Then it's her fault she's gone."

"No it's not. The men who took her. . . They don't take kindly to people leavin'. So when yer Ma tried to-"

"Aunt Keeva had to save her butt." Braden said bitterly. "And she's been living with us, just to make sure they never come back." He sighed, and got to his feet, still holding the girl. "Could you hold her?" Before Murphy could say no, Braden had handed him the girl, and was opening the refrigerator.

"Do ya not like yer parents?" He asked. Braden sighed as he pulled an ice pop out of the freezer, and opened it, handing it to the girl.

"Want one?" Murphy shook his head. Braden shrugged as he poured himself a glass of water. "It's not so much that I don't like them, cause really, I do. I mean, they're my parents. I have to love them. But Keeva? She's only ten years older than I am, and she's so much fun. She takes us to the park, swimming. . . When I played little league? She never missed a damn game. She's more of a mother to us than my Mom." He sighed. "My Dad? He does the best he can, but my Mom acts like such a scatterbrained kid all the time, he can't help it." He leaned back against the counter and shook his head. "God knows I love them though." He paused, and eyed him.

"So what's the deal with you and my Aunt?" Murphy nearly dropped the girl, who was eating her ice pop as though she didn't have a care in the world.

"What?"

"You. And Keeva. Are you together?" Murphy stared at him, and the boy raised an eyebrow.

"No!" Murphy said quickly, as soon as his brain was able to form words again. The girl twisted in his arms, having finished the ice pop, and grabbed his rosary, pulling it out from under his shirt. "Hey!"

"Catrina!" Braden exclaimed, but his sister ignored him, running her small fingers over the cross. She murmured something under her breath.

"What was that?" Murphy asked. The girl looked up at him.

"In nomeni patri et fili, spiritus sancti." The girl said. Murphy stared at her.

"How'd ya know that?" He asked. Braden chuckled.

"My Aunt takes us to Mass every Sunday." He explained. "My parents couldn't really care less whether we went or not, but she does. She says that a lot, after she prays." Footsteps sounded on the stairs, and Keeva appeared at Murphy's shoulder, her jaw set, her blue eyes fierce. She was muttering something, and as she got closer, Murphy could hear her cursing in Latin.

"Hey! Ya got little ears here!" He said with a smirk. Braden snickered again.

"And then there's the times where she's cursing so much my Mom has to smack her."

"_Fairme-la_!" Keeva said, and Murphy raised his eyebrows at her.

"_C'est ne pas tres polie_." He said. She glared at him, slinging a duffel bag over her shoulder, and then her eyes fell on the girl, still in Murphy's arms, who had started crying again. She held out her arms, and took the girl from Murphy, giving her a tight hug.

"I'll be back sweetie." She assured the girl. "I'll be back."

"You're sure about that?" Braden asked. Keeva handed the girl to John, who had come up behind her. She used one arm to pull the teenager into her embrace, then, as he returned the hug, she put her other arm around him.

"I'll come back." She said. "I swear." She let go of him, and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek, then turned to Murphy, her eyes bright.

"Let's go." She said, her voice cracking. Murphy nodded, and gave John a nod. The man put the girl down and caught up with Murphy as he was about to walk out the door. Keeva was already most of the way down the front walk.

"Hey." He caught Murphy's arm. "If you can't-" His voice caught, and he cleared his throat, starting again. "If you can't find Brigh, make sure Keeva comes back alive. Please." Murphy hesitated, then nodded.

* * *

He watched her as she played with the ring on her finger. She hadn't said a word since they'd gotten back to the apartment. Conner glanced at him, and Murphy shrugged.

"Keeva?" Conner asked. She glanced up at him. "Are you, ya know, all right?" She bit her lip, hesitating.

"They were. . ." She sighed, and tried again. "He was so lost." She said, running a hand through her hair. "John really needs her." She glanced up at the twins. "I've got to find her, or they're going to fall apart." Murphy sighed, shaking his head.

"It wasn't her." He said quietly. "Yer brother-in-law may need her, but their kids? They need _you_."

"And you got that from talking to them for what, two minutes?" She snapped. Murphy shut his mouth, and glanced at Conner, but his twin was looking at Keeva. He turned his eyes back to the woman on the other end of the sofa.

"Aye. The boy told me himself." Keeva wet her lips, and stood up. They thought for a moment she was going to leave, but then she started pacing.

"I _hate_ this!" She said angrily. "I can't be with them, and Smecker doesn't want me helping!"

"He doesn't want you gettin' hurt." Conner said, pushing himself up out of the chair he'd been sitting in. "And neither do we."

"I can take care of myself!" Her accent got thicker as her temper flared. Conner sighed, still standing relatively close to the chair. He was a little hesitant to get near the woman. Irish women were known for their tempers.

"We weren't suggestin' ya can't." Murphy assured from next to Conner. He'd gotten up sometime during the discussion. "We're just sayin' that when ya get tangled with the Yakavettas, it ain't so easy ta get ou' again."

Conner could feel the tension in the air, and he hated every passing second. He forced a smile.

"Hey. I've got a great fuckin' idea." He said, looking over at Murphy. "We haven't been down ta McGinty's in a while." Murphy grinned.

"Aye, that's true." His eyes were dancing. "Let's go."

* * *

Hehe, The next scene is cool. I'll update when I feel like it.

I love reviewers eternally!


	5. Chapter 5

Hmm... the update when I feel like it thing? I've got the entire story written, I just don't feel like posting it all at once. So I'll update whenever I remember that this story exists. )

* * *

As they entered, Doc looked up, and a grin spread over his weathered face. "Boys!" His eyes landed on Keeva, and his grin widened.

"So which one o' ya b-b-boys found y-yerself a girl?" He asked as the three of them took a seat at the bar. "Fuck! Ass!"

"Neither." Conner replied. "This here's Keeva. We're helpin' her find her sister."

"Does everyone know abou' ya?" She asked. Murphy shrugged.

"I think there's a couple o' guys in Australia. . ." Conner smacked him on the back of the head, and gathered their beers, taking them to a table in the back corner.

"Ignore him, he's an idiot." He told her as she slid into the booth next to him. Murphy was forced to sit on the other side, facing the two of them.

"Am not." He said, lighting two cigarettes. He passed one to Conner.

"Are so." Conner took a swig of beer. Keeva eyed the two of them, then swung her eyes around the pub. To a normal passerby it would seem as though the boys were perfectly relaxed. Murphy was slumped back in the corner, his legs stretching out the length of the seat. Conner was leaning back in the seat, one arm on the top of the cushion behind her head, and one on the table, holding his beer. From their two vantage points, they had the entire bar minus the booths next to them in sight. She shook her head, taking a sip of beer.

"Okay, maybe a little bit." He admitted with a shrug, draining half his beer. Keeva smirked. A lot of things could be said about the Irish, but _nobody_ can beat them in a drinking contest. Keeva looked down at her own glass to discover that she herself had emptied most of her own glass. She looked up at the boys.

"'nother one?" They nodded, and she got up to get another three.

"S-s-so," Doc stuttered as he handed over the drinks. She leaned on the counter so she could hear him over the racket. "How d'ya know th-th-tha boys?"

She gave the older man a soft smile. "They're helpin' me find me sister." She replied. "She got herself in with some unsavory people." Doc nodded.

"Th-th-they're good boys." He said. "Th-they won't l-let ya down." His head snapped to the side. "Fuck! Ass!" Shaking her head, she carried the three glasses back to the table, and slid back in next to Conner.

"What'd Doc say?" Conner asked. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"You worried about him saying something embarrassing?" She asked.

"Well. . . Yeah." Murphy admitted. Keeva took a long sip of her drink and grinned at him.

"Then maybe I should go talk to him again." She made to get up, but Conner grabbed her sleeve. She laughed and leaned back against the back of the booth.

* * *

They stayed there, talking, laughing and drinking until it was well past midnight. The door opened, and the few remaining people turned to look at the three Italians who'd walked in the door. 

Keeva, having switched seats some time during the night, shrunk back into Murphy, who slung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer.

"We are looking for a girl. We've been to every fucking Irish bar in South Boston." The man's Italian accent was heavy, his deep set eyes scanning the room. They landed on a small booth in the back. The entire room had gone silent. The only men left were five or six regulars. They knew better than to start anything with the MacManus boys, but they weren't about to warn the men. They just all leaned back into the bar, waiting.

The Italians stopped in front of the table, essentially blocking the three in. The leader gave Keeva a smile that would have looked right in place on a lion about to pounce. "You look just like the picture." He said. "Your sister keeps one in her pocket."

Murphy was suddenly very, very glad he had his arm around Keeva's shoulders from behind. He was able to keep her in place as he and Conner sized up the men in front of them. They could see the lumps in their jackets that were obviously guns.

The boys had come to the pub completely unarmed.

"It's rather funny though." The leader went on. "She doesn't keep one of her children and husband on her."

"That's so you fuckers don't know what the fuck they look like!" Murphy had to bring his other arm up and wrap it around her waist to keep her in the booth. For that, he got an elbow in the gut.

Conner saw her elbow move up, and knew what was coming next. He shoved himself off the wall behind him, and flung himself at the man on the left of the leader. They tumbled to the ground as Keeva threw herself on the leader, knocking his hand away before he could go for his gun. In another second, Murphy had pinned down the other man.

The man Conner had pinned down landed a punch to his cheekbone. Reeling back, he reached up and grabbed the glass that held his beer, and slammed it into the man's head. He dropped, immediately unconscious. He turned and sized up the situation. Murphy's man was unconscious too, though he didn't have a scratch on him. He'd have to ask Murph about that later.

The two of them froze as they watched Keeva. The man had managed to get a hold on her arm, and threw her into the wall. His fist swung forward, but she ducked, diving off to the right into a roll. She popped swiftly back up to her feet with a grace that belied her seven beers. Spinning on her heel, she raised her sneaker to slam into the man's back. He stumbled forward into the wall. Pushing himself off of it, he lunged at Keeva. In an impressive move, she jumped into the air, actually diving over the man. She landed in a shoulder roll and got to her feet again.

"Bring it on fucker!" She cried as he got to his feet again. She didn't see his hand going into his jacket, but the boys did. Murphy lunged at Keeva as Conner launched himself toward the man. A shot rang out, shattering a glass above Murphy and Keeva. They covered their heads with their arms to protect themselves from the falling glass. Landing a solid punch to the man's temple, Conner brought him down. He turned to his brother, who was picking himself up off of Keeva.

"Let's get the fuck out o' here." He eyed Murphy. "Murph, yer bleedin'." His brother waved him off and helped Keeva to her feet.

"Let's go."

* * *

"Ow!" 

"Stop bein' a baby!"

"I'm not bein a fuckin' baby! That fuckin' hurt!"

"It's just a piece o' glass! Shit! Come back here!"

"Not while you've still got those tweezers!"

"Murph, sit back down!"

"No!"

"Conner!"

Conner looked up from the paper and eyed the two of them. Murphy was on one side of the table, his face bleeding lightly from the broken glass embedded in it. Keeva was on the other, a damp towel stained red with some of Murphy's blood in one hand, and tweezers in the other. She'd been trying to get the glass out of his face.

"Conner, a little help?" She asked. Conner looked at Murphy.

"Tha glass needs ta come out Murph." He said, folding the paper slowly. "Now you've got three choices here. One, ya let her do it and not grumble so much. Fer Pete's sake, you've been shot b'fore, stop being such a fuckin' baby. Two, I hold you down, and let her take it out. Three, she holds ya down and _I_ take it out."

"I'd suggest number one." Keeva said. Cursing under his breath in several different languages, he walked over to the worn armchair and sat down. Conner left the room to take a shower.

"Okay. Now if you hold still, this won't hurt as much." She said, and sat on the arm of the chair. She frowned, and moved so she was in front of him. When she stood to the side, she blocked her own light. So she opted to sit on him.

"Hey!" He squirmed.

"Don't move." She said. "Maybe this'll keep you from gettin' up." Murphy tried to move away from the tweezers. She smacked him on the arm, and glared at him. "If you keep movin', the glass is goin ta go in further." She put a hand on the top of his head firmly, and started pulling the small pieces of glass out of his face. "So, you were shot?" She asked. Murphy sighed.

"Aye." He said. He tried to nod, but her grip on his head tightened painfully. She set the tweezers down on her jean-covered leg and picked up the damp towel, dabbing at his face. He flinched.

"How'd that happen?" She asked.

"It was one of our 'jobs'." He said. "We were walkin' away when this guy comes out of nowhere and starts shootin' at us." Keeva nodded, picking up the tweezers again. He flinched as she moved them toward her, his eyes on her hand. She gave his head a squeeze.

"Look at me face." She instructed. "Ignore the tweezers."

"You try doin' this sometime." He retorted.

"I have, and believe me, it's best if you don't see what the fuck I'm doin'." Murphy fixed his eyes on her face. "Okay. So the guy comes out of nowhere and starts shootin' at ya. What happened?"

"Well, Conner 'n me pulled out our own fuckin' guns an' shot at him right back." She nodded, shifting slightly in his lap.

"Then what?" She put the tweezers down again, wiping the blood off his face again. He flinched as the rough fabric touched his torn skin. "Murph?"

"I got shot in tha arm. Conner got hit in tha leg. An' Rocco-" He stopped, suddenly going very still. Until she yanked a rather large piece out. "Fuck!"

"Sorry!" She exclaimed. He could feel the warm blood trickling down his face, and she pressed the cloth into the cut. "Who's Rocco?"

"He was. . . A friend." He said with a heavy sigh. "He was one of us."

"So what happened to him? When this guy was shooting?" She'd as about why he said he 'was' later.

"Got his fuckin' finger shot off." He replied. Keeva paused a moment, and stared at him. Then she raised her eyebrows.

"His finger?" Murphy nodded, and she took the towel away from his face. "Ick. I'll be righ' back. Don't move." She returned a moment later, the towel more damp, and slightly less red. She pressed it to his face again, and he saw something else in her other hand as she sat down in his lap again. After a moment, she removed the cool towel from his face, and twisted the object in her hands. It was a small flashlight, which she shone on his face.

"So. Am I all right?" He asked. She sighed, and put a finger on her chin, pretending to think.

"I don't know." She said. "You feel anymore glass?" He frowned, then shrugged.

"Donno. Couldn't feel most o' it in tha first place." She lifted her hand, and gently turned his head to the injured side was facing her. She lifted her hand higher, and let her fingers trail down over the cuts. She heard him inhale sharply, but there were no signs of pain. Suddenly, he reached up and grabbed her wrist, pulling her hand away from his face.

"Don' do that." He said, turning to look at her again. Their eyes locked for a split second, then he looked away. "Stings a little."

"So, did you ever find out who shot ya?" She asked.

"T'was me." Keeva, startled, shrieked started to turn to see who had spoken, but Murphy jumped to his feet, dumping her on the floor with a loud thump.

"Fuck!" Keeva let a small groan escape her lips as she rolled over, and looked up into the laughing eyes of Da MacManus. It took her a moment to register this fact.

"_You_ shot them?" She asked. He gave her a soft smile as Murphy helped her to her feet, but didn't answer. Instead, he looked at Murphy.

"What the fuck happened ta you?" He asked, gripping Murphy's chin gently, but firm enough to turn his head.

"Da, it's nothin'."

"Fuckin' bar fight." Conner said from the doorway. They looked up to find him standing in the doorway, towel around his waist and nothing else on. "I, er. . . Heard her shout."

"Your Da scared the shit out o' me!" Da shook his head, and disappeared into his room. Murphy eyed his brother.

"Why didn't ya tell him it was the fuckin' Italians?" He asked. Conner sighed.

"If I did, he'd never fuckin' let her set foot outside again." He turned and walked back down the hall, presumably to get clothes on or something. Keeva yawned, and covered it with her hand. She hadn't realized how tired she was.

"C'm on." Murphy said, leading her down the hall. "You've got Conner's bed tonight."

"What about him?" She asked. He shrugged.

"Not a problem." He lead her through a door into the room with the two beds. Conner looked up at them as they came in, and shot a pointed look at Murphy.

"Hey! I won this time. Maybe you'll win tomorrow." Conner made a face at his brother, then left. Murphy collapsed onto the bed farthest from the door, kicking off his shoes.

"This is really nice of ye." She said, pulling over her duffel bag and yanking a tank top out. Murphy made an indistinct sound as he rolled onto his side, facing away from her. She changed quickly into her pajamas, and slid under the covers. She was asleep within seconds.

* * *


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks to those of you who reviewed! I love you!_

* * *

Faces swam in front of her vision. Men, leering at her. The world was spinning._

_Suddenly it settled, and she found herself looking at a door. A hand reached around her and pulled It open, and she was shoved through. She fell to her knees, and pain raced up her legs._

"_Look!" A heavily accented voice commanded. Someone grabbed her hair, yanking her head up. Her eyes widened at the two children sitting in front of her. Catrina had hold of Braden's arm in a death grip. _

"_No! Leave them alone!" She tried to scream the words, but they only came out as a whisper. A laugh resonated from above her, and her head was pulled to the side. Cold steel pressed against her neck, and she swallowed, wetting her lips as hot tears spilled from her eyes. _

"_Look away." She whispered to the children. Catrina turned her face away, but Braden continued to watch. The steel bit into her neck, sweeping across her throat._

Keeva sat bolt upright in bed, breathing hard.

"Keeva!" The whisper made her turn and look at Murphy, who was sitting on the edge of the bed. He'd obviously been trying to wake her up. She blinked a couple of times, and found that she was crying. His arms folded around her, one hand sliding around her back, the other pulling her head to his shoulder. The door opened, and Conner slipped in quietly.

"What the fuck's goin' on?" He asked in a whisper. Murphy glanced up at him, and Keeva felt him shrug.

"Nightmare." She murmured into his shoulder. The hand that was holding her head to his shoulder began to stroke her hair. He didn't try to say anything, because he knew it wasn't going to help. She felt the mattress go down as Conner sat down on her other side, and felt his hand on her shoulder. She relaxed totally, feeling completely safe for the first time in six years. They weren't going to let anything happen to her. At all.

"Ya want ta tell us what it was?" Conner asked softly, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze. She swallowed and took a shuddering breath.

"I was in a room." She whispered. The bed shifted as Conner leaned in closer to hear her. "Braden an' Catrina were there."

"Her niece an' nephew." Murphy interjected. Conner nodded.

"Someone was there, but he was behind me. I couldn't see his fuckin' face." She shuddered. "He pulled me head ta the side, and told them to watch."

"Watch what?"

"They slit my throat." Her hand involuntarily raised to her neck, brushing Murphy's chest on the way up. The boys were silent for a moment, and she shuddered.

"I'll take yer the floor." Conner said. Murphy nodded, and started to get up. But She grabbed his arm.

"Don't." Her voice was shaking. His brows knit together in concern, but he sat back down, stretching out next to her.

"Conn, ya can take _my_ bed." He said. Conner eyed the two of them, and met Keeva's eyes. She looked terrified of letting go of Murphy.

Sighing, he nodded and climbed into Murphy's bed. He fell back asleep in a matter of seconds.

On the second bed, Murphy looked down at the top of Keeva's head, which was resting on his shoulder. She really cared about those kids.

Her words from earlier, when she was yelling at Smecker, drifted through his head. _They need their mother! I can't replace her! I'm not her, and I can never be her! I am not fuckin' mother material!_

From what he'd seen, she was like a mother to those kids. As much as her sister was. He bit his lip, and listening to her even breathing. Of course, she'd been living with them for six years, and from what he'd seen, the girl was more attached to her than she was to her mother.

He closed his eyes, and slowed his breathing to match hers.

* * *

Conner woke up slowly, and rolled over on the bed. What was he doing on a bed? He'd went to sleep on the sofa.

Then he remembered waking up to Keeva shouting, and walking in to find Murphy holding her shaking form. It had been hard to believe that it was the same woman who had been kicking that Italian's ass in McGinty's earlier that night. But when she'd explained about her nightmare, the children being made to watch her die.

What disturbed him though, was that she hadn't been upset about dying in her dream, like most people would have. She had been worried about those kids, and they weren't even hers.

Shaking his head, he rolled over and looked at the bed where his twin and Keeva lay. He was lying flat on his back, his arm around her waist (that was obvious from the lump) and her head almost in the middle of his chest. Allowing himself a smirk, he pulled on a pair of jeans and stumbled out of the room to make coffee.

Keeva moved next, smelling coffee. Her head was aching. She'd had plenty to drink the night before, but it hadn't been enough to really give her a hangover. She made her way into the kitchen to find a shirtless Conner at the table. She felt a smile pull at her lips as she saw a steaming mug already set out for her.

"Saw ye were awake." He said. "Thought ya might want-" He paused as he looked up at her. "-That." He quickly looked down at the paper in his hands. Keeva glanced down at herself, and shook her head, the corner of her mouth twitching. She probably should have changed or something. She was wearing her normal pajamas, a tight, low-cut tank top with shorts that were. . . short. She pulled her knees up to her chest as she sat down, drinking her mug of coffee. As Conner turned the page, she couldn't help a small smile.

"What?" He asked. She smirked. He'd noticed. She looked up at his face, and shook her head.

"Murphy's got a tattoo on his chest." She pointed out. "You don't." He rolled his eyes, and ducked below the page of paper. "Well?"

"He's got one somewhere else." Murphy muttered from the door, and took Keeva's mug from her hands.

"Hey! Give that back!" Murphy smirked at her, and took a long sip, never taking his eyes off her face. She stretched out her legs and swiftly stood, making to grab the mug back from him.

"I don't think I-" Murphy froze momentarily as he looked down at her now standing form, and she took the opportunity to tackle him to the ground, and sat on his stomach, holding the mug triumphantly in her hands. He glared at her. "That's not fuckin' fair." He said. She shrugged, and set the mug up on the table.

"What're ya goin' ta do about it?" She asked. Murphy grinned, and Keeva suddenly found herself on her back, Murphy straddling her hips, holding her wrists together and pressed into her chest. "Hey!" He was still grinning.

"Now _this_ is fair." He said. She made a face at him, and twisted, bringing her legs up in an almost impossible move and locking her ankles together in front of him. With a yank, he found himself pinned to the ground, still holding her wrists as she sat on his hips.

"No." She said with a grin. "_This_ is-" Suddenly someone grabbed her around the waist from behind, and she twisted, trying to get out of the warm grip, but Conner held her fast, finally dropping her onto the sofa and pinning her hands above her head. Murphy sat on her thighs, and she found herself completely unable to move.

She glared at them. "Oh? Now what're you goin' ta me?" She asked. Murphy grinned evilly, and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Are ye ticklish?" Keeva squirmed, trying to get away from the boys, but found herself still unable to escape.

"We'll take that as a 'yes'." Conner said, and Murphy leaned forward, his hands attacking her sides. She dissolved into hysterical laughter, squirming as she tried to get away from them.

Smecker cleared his throat from the doorway, and the boys froze, turning to look at him. Conner dropped Keeva's hands and straightened, but Murphy stayed frozen where he was, on top of her.

"Can I have a word with the lady?" He asked. "Alone?" The twins took the hint, and left the room.

"I shall have my _revenge_!" She cried over-dramatically as they left the room, and made a face at their backs.

"Keeva." She turned back to Smecker. "We need to talk."

"Did you find my sister?" She asked.

"No. But we have a lead."

"What is it?" He had a lead? That meant they was closer to finding her.

"Keeva, I can't tell you that."

"Why the fuck not?"

"Because you'll take it and go it fucking alone. I can't let you do that." She glared at him. "I know what happened last night." She glanced at the door Conner and Murphy had disappeared through. "Don't worry. It wasn't them. Their Da talked to McGinty, then to me." He ran a hand through his hair. "Listen. You're stronger than anyone could have thought. You got your sister out, even if it wasn't forever, and that's more than most fuckin people do."

"I am not most fuckin' people Smecker!" She exclaimed.

"I know that, which is why-"

"Which is why I _need_ to be able to _do_ something. I can't just sit around, waiting for something to happen! And I'm not going to! Now you can either tell me what you know, or not, but I'm going to find her either way!"

"Keeva, listen to me." Smecker said. She snapped her mouth shut, clenching her jaw. "I don't want you anywhere near this investigation. It's-"

"If you're abou' ta tell me it's too fuckin' dangerous, shove it!" She shouted. "I can handle whatever those mother-fuckin Italians throw at me!"

"This isn't fuckin' about you!" Smecker shouted. Keeva stopped. "You have to see that! It's not _you_ I'm trying to protect here! If _you_ go after your sister without knowing what you're doing, you can get your family killed too!" All the color drained from her face, leaving her the color of ashes.

"I-"

"Hadn't fucking thought of that? If you piss them off, they _will_ come after those kids! I haven't been trying to protect _you_! _You_ don't fucking need it!" Keeva collapsed back on the sofa, for once without any reply. "That's why I wanted you to stay here! I knew if you went back to that house, you'd want to find her even more than you do now!" Keeva's hands were shaking.

"Paul-"

"No! Let me fucking finish!" She fell silent. "If we want your family to stay safe, we have to go by the fuckin book on this for a while! After I find her, I'll let you know, and you can be the one to get her. I want you and your family as fuckin far away from this as you can get!" Keeva's breathing was shallow and uneven as Smecker finished.

"Out." A voice said from somewhere to her right.

"What?" Smecker sounded astonished.

"Out." A second voice said. "Ye can come back later, but leave. Ye made yer fuckin' point." Conner. It was Conner who'd spoken.

Her dream flashed in front of her eyes, and she dug the heels of her palms into them, trying to get their faces out of her head. Someone grabbed her wrists, yanking her hands away from her face as a door slammed.

"Don't worry abou' him." Murphy said. She opened her eyes and looked down at him as he kneeled in front of her. "He means well enough."

"I-" She swallowed and tried again. "I know." She let out a shuddering breath. "It's just-" She bit her lip. "I hadn't thought about that before. That by doing this I'd be putting them in more danger."

"Ye wouldn't." Murphy said, sliding up onto the sofa next to her. Conner had disappeared again. "Ye think about what happens when ye succeed. Not when ya fail." She allowed herself to look up at him. "And _that_," He said. "Is a extraordinary trait." He slid his arm around her shoulders and pulled her toward him. She allowed her head to drop onto his shoulder as he planted a kiss on the top of her head. She sighed.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly, her accent thicker with her emotion.

"Abou' what?" He asked.

"Bringing this all on you. I don't-"

"Hey." He pulled away from her, putting a hand under her chin to raise her head to look at him. "Don' apologize. We're happy ta help."

"Thanks." She said. He dropped his hand as Da walked in.

"I need ta talk with me boys for a few minutes." He said. Keeva bit her lip, and nodded, heading to take a shower.

* * *

When she came out, Da was gone, and the boys were cleaning their guns. Since they were sitting on the sofa, she took the armchair, sitting in it sideways so her feet were flung over the armrest.

"You guys get a new job?" She asked. They looked up at her, and nodded. She shifted in her chair, and let her head fall back so she was looking at the wall behind her. "Oh."

"Russians this time." Murphy said. "Ow! What was tha' for?" She lifted her head to see a miffed-looking Conner and Murphy rubbing the back of his head.

"She doesn't need ta know tha'." Conner said. Heaving a heavy sigh, she walked into the kitchen to find something for lunch. Except there wasn't food in the fridge. Only beer. Shaking her head, she shut it. Grabbing her coat from the bedroom, she headed out the door. Two hands caught her arms, holding her in place.

"Where da ye think yer goin'?" Murphy asked. She rolled her eyes.

"You have no food." They looked at each other, and dropped their hands at the same time.

"Oh." Conner said, then his face hardened with a decision. "But Murph's goin' with ya." Rolling her eyes again as Murphy walked back into the other room, she fixed the collar on her coat. A few minutes later he returned, and she could see he was armed.

"Murph-"

"Af'er last night, I'm not goin' with ye unarmed." She just shook her head.

* * *

"Da we have room fer-"

"Murph, your fridge was empty. You've got room for practically everythin' in tha store."

"Right." He tossed the bag of whatever he was holding in the cart. Keeva sighed. As far as she could see, the only things in the cart that weren't junk food were the things she had put in. How could the twins eat like that and still be in shape?

She smiled at the thought. She could just picture them sitting around all day eating junk food, and pointing out the mistakes in movies.

Walking through the frozen section, she realized that she'd lost Murphy somewhere. After a moment of worrying, she figured he'd panic and race through the store trying to find her anyway. And the store only really needed one idiot racing through it.

She was right. As she picked up a tub of mint-chocolate-chip ice cream, he skidded to a halt at the end of the aisle and saw her. Relaxing his stance, he walked over to her quickly.

"Ye scared the shit out o' me." He said. She shrugged, tossing the ice cream in the cart.

"Yer tha one who got lost." She replied, ignoring his glare. Then she glanced at him. In a swift movement, she reached over and yanked his coat shut, glaring icily at him. "Watch it!" He set his jaw, following her as she headed for the checkout line. He was cursing under his breath in several different languages. She just shook her head, and paid for the groceries.

Murphy insisted on carry most of the bags, but Keeva smacked him and took and an even half. He was still muttering about stubborn girls when they got back to the apartment.

* * *

They went to McGinty's again that night, this time arriving early and taking seats at the bar. All the regulars who walked in greeted the MacManus twins with enthusiasm, and said 'hi' to Keeva. Then others started coming in. Those who didn't know the twins or Keeva.

She was starting to regret her choice of clothes. She'd wanted to look nice, so she'd pulled on a pair of tight, dark blue jeans and some heels she'd stolen from her sister a few weeks before. On top of that was a gray off-the-shoulder sweater and a black ribbon choker with a cross dangling from it. She'd also pulled her hair up into a messy ponytail. As the bar began to get more crowded, Murphy suggested that they move to a booth in the back, which was decided to be a good idea.

"I'll be back as soon as I get a refill." Keeva said, turning back to the bar. She felt someone put a hand on the middle of her back, and ignored it, thinking it was Murphy. It disappeared after a moment. "Hey Doc?" He turned to look at her, and she flashed him a smile. "Another?" He gave her one of his crooked grins and got her a fresh beer. The hand returned, expect there was another, and they were gripping her waist. Whipping around, her beer in hand, she ran headlong into a man, but it wasn't Murphy.

He had about a foot on her, a black bandana tied over below-shoulder length red hair which was pulled back into a ponytail. His leather jacket didn't even begin to define the muscles underneath, and smelled strongly of cigar smoke. She glanced around quickly for the twins and saw them deep in conversation at the back table. Conner's jaw was set determinedly, and Murphy was rolling his eyes, looking skeptical.

"Hey, where're ya rushin' off to?" He asked. Keeva's body froze as he reached for her again.

"Me friends." She said, swallowing as she took a step backward, into the bar. She glanced back at the table, but the man was blocking her view with his overly large body. "They're waitin' in tha back fer me."

"No we're not." Murphy said from her left. He took her beer out of her hands and set it down on the counter. "Come on."

"Hey, she's not going anywhere." The man took a drunken step forward. Murphy's grip on her arm tightened.

"Kee, come on." She took a step closer to him as she spotted Conner standing about three feet to her right, and closing in. He popped up next to the bar, beer in hand, which he held out to the man.

"The lady's with us." He said, sounding more calm than he was. "Jus' have a fuckin' drink an' leave 'er alone? Okay?"

No one saw what happened next, but Conner ended up on the floor between the barstools, holding his nose. The bar went deadly silent as he started to get up. Since Murphy's grip on her arm had loosened, she yanked herself out of his grip and grabbed Conner's arm, pulling him to his feet. After he was standing, he shrugged her off, wiping off some of the blood with the back of his hand.

"That wasn't very nice." He said. The regulars in the bar had pushed to the front, ready to help defend the boys.

"Bitch ain't worth it."

The next thing Keeva knew the man was on the ground, Murphy on top of him. Keeva moved forward, but Conner grabbed her arm, shoving her back into the bar and he moved forward. He got a grip on one of Murphy's flailing arm, and yanked him to his feet.

"Don't you fuckin call-"

"Murph! Get a fuckin' hold o' yerself!" Conner shouted, and dragged his brother out the door. Keeva ran to the booth and gathered all three of their coats, and hurried out after them. She heard them yelling in the alley.

"Didn't ye hear what he fuckin' called her?"

"Murph, get a hold o' yerself! Ya can't start a fight with every single person who looks at her wrong!"

"And why the fuck not?" Conner didn't answer. "Man, she's. . . I don' even fuckin know."

She was going to walk around the corner, but she knew she wasn't supposed to hear that. After about a minute of silence, she took a deep breath and stepped around the corner. Unsurprisingly, the two were smoking. She tossed Murphy his coat, hitting him in the face. Conner shook his head, keeping his face even as he snatched his coat before she could throw it at him.

"What tha fuck was that?" She snapped, glaring at Murphy. He looked up at her, narrowing his eyes at her.

"What the fuck's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that we don't have to get in a fight every fuckin' time we leave the apartment!"

"Did ya not notice that he was touchin' ya?"

"Aye, I fuckin' did! But that doesn't mean I need some modern-day knights to come and fuckin' rescue me! I'm not some fuckin' damsel! I can take care of meself!"

"Never said ya fuckin' couldn't!" He stormed out of the alley, yanking his coat on. Conner sighed heavily, and smashed out his cigarette with his boot.

"Fuck." He said, shaking his head. "Are ya both that fuckin' thick?" Keeva eyed him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What's that supposed ta mean?"

"Nothing, let's fuckin' go." He walked out of the alley, expecting her to follow. But when he turned around she was at the other end, walking away from him. "Keeva!" She didn't turn around, and from the way she was walking, he guessed that she wasn't going to. "Oh, fuck! Keeva!" By the time he got to the other end of the alley she was gone.

* * *

Muahaha! I feel evil! Hehe. Reviews are lovely!


	7. Chapter 7

Uh, thanks to GoddessLaughs for a kick in the ass to post this next chapter. I _almost_ did forget about it. Thanks!

* * *

"Murph!" Conner slammed the door behind him. He found his brother sprawled out on the sofa, his arm slung over his face. "Murph!"

"What the fuck da ya want?"

"She ran off!" Murphy was suddenly on his feet.

"WHAT!"

"Right after ya ran off Murph! _She_ ran off!"

"Well where tha fuck did she go!" Murphy asked, his voice rising.

"I have no fuckin' idea Murph! Why the fuck da ya think I'm here?" Conner shouted.

"Well, where should we start fuckin' lookin'?" Murphy yelled back.

"I've got no fuckin' clue!" Things were getting heated.

"Well, that's brilliant!"

"Shut the fuck up! It's your fuckin' fault she ran off!"

"How the fuck is it my fault?"

"Ya fucking yelled at her man!" Conner shouted. "Did ye not look at her fuckin' face? Ya hurt her!"

"Whatever man." Murphy said, backing down as he yanked his coat on. "Let's start fuckin' looking."

* * *

She was trying to slow her breathing, her hands in her pockets. She felt like she'd just run a race, when in fact she'd only gone a few blocks. But she was lost, and had no idea where the MacManus's apartment was.

But it didn't really matter. If she couldn't find her way back, she'd call Smecker. Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the doors of the church and slipped inside. She looked over at the prayer candles, and pulled a small matchbook out of her pocket, and lit four candles. She whispered an name for each one.

"John." She moved on to the second one. "Brigh." She didn't hear the door open, and the relieved sigh. "Braden." She lit the fourth candle as the match burned her fingers. She blew it out and sighed, watching the last flame. "Catrina." She lowered her eyes, and saw a flash next to her. She looked over at the hand holding the match.

_Aequitas_. The hand moved forward and lit another candle, right next to the four she'd already lit.

"Keeva." She looked over at Murphy. The candlelight was dancing around in his eyes, making them seem almost unreal. She rolled her eyes and turned away from him, her hand clutching the beads in her pocket. "Look, I'm sorry, all right?" She ignored him, stepping out into the cold night air. She stopped halfway down the steps, and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She let the cold seep into her body, wishing it could take away her feelings, her helplessness. "Keeva." She opened her eyes to find him standing on the step directly below her, but his eyes were level with hers. She glanced down at the steps, and was glad to see that they were pretty shallow, wide steps. Now she didn't feel _as_ short.

She looked up at him, and after she met his eyes she found she couldn't look away. They just stood there, staring at each other for a long moment.

"Ya scared the shit out o' us." Murphy said quietly. She didn't answer. The wind picked up, knocking some of her hair out of her ponytail. She shivered, and folded her arms across her chest, trying vainly to find some warmth. He hand flashed at the corner of her vision, as he reached up and pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. She shivered again, and this time it had nothing to do with the cold. "Don't do that again." His voice had dropped to a whisper, and his hand rested gently against the side of her head. "Okay?" She looked up at him, and couldn't help a small smile.

"Okay, ya big softie." She punched him lightly on the shoulder, causing him to stumble down a few steps.

"'Ey!" She grinned at his indignant look as she jumped down the rest of the stairs, landing next to him. "That wasn't fuckin' nice." She shook her head, and started to take a step. Then she stopped and looked over at him.

"Um. . . Which way back to your apartment?" Shaking his head, Murphy slung an arm around her shoulders.

"We're not goin' back ta tha apartment." He said, leading her down the street. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?"

"At least not right away. If we go right back there, Conner'll go fuckin' insane. Ya shoulda seen him burstin' in ta the apartment. I think he migh'a had a panic attack." Keeva grinned at him.

"An' _you _didn't?"

He gave her a sheepish grin. "Course not."

"Right." Conner came sprinting down the street toward them, skidding to a stop in front of them.

"What the fuck did ye think ya were doin'?" He asked sharply, glaring at her. She rolled her eyes.

"We found him. Can we go home now?"

* * *

Conner eyed Murphy.

"What made ya think ta look in tha church?" He asked. Murphy shrugged, taking a swig of beer. "Whatever man. I don' think McGinty's is a very good idea." He sighed. "We can't take her fuckin' anywhere without her gettin' inta some kind o' trouble." Murphy raised his eyebrows, pointing at Conner with the fingers holding his cigarette.

"Ya know what I think?" He grinned. "I think it was that sweater." Conner rolled his eyes.

"Whatever man." He said, clapping Murphy's knee with his hand as he got up. "I'll see ya in the mornin'. Have fun on tha sofa."

"Fuck you." Murphy said, putting out his cigarette.

"Well, unless ye wanted ta sleep with Keeva again. You two looked pretty cozy this morning." Murphy threw a pillow at him, which returned to smack him in the head as Conner headed off to bed.

* * *

Murphy stayed up for a while though, flipping aimlessly through the channels. Around one in the morning, the squeak of the floorboards made him look up. Keeva was walking slowly and quietly into the room.

"Tryin' ta sneak up on me?" He asked. She made a face at him, slipping silently across the room and into the kitchen.

"No. I wanted some ice cream." She came back a few moment later with a spoon and the entire tub, and paused in front of the sofa, spoon in her mouth. She tapped his legs, and he raised his eyebrows, stretching out even further.

"I don't really feel like movin'." He said. She rolled her eyes and turned, flopping down on his legs. "Hey!" She pulled the spoon out of her mouth and grinned.

"Ya shoulda moved."

"I will, if you'd get up." She did, and he sat up, leaning back into the corner of the sofa. She shifted so she was leaning against his shoulder, the tub of ice cream situated on her stomach.

"So, what're we watchin'?" She asked. Murphy shrugged.

"No fuckin' clue." He said. She narrowed her eyes at the screen, then grimaced. "Oh, please change the channel. I don' want ta watch reruns of Baywatch."

"I donno, it looks kinda interestin'." She smacked him. "Give me a bite an' I'll change it." She dug out of spoonful of ice cream and raised it up above her head, titling it back so he could take a bite. As he leaned forward to get it, she brought it down, and stuck it into her own mouth, and giving his shocked expression a triumphant grin.

"I can watch it." She said, smirking. "All those guys runnin' around withou' shirts."

"They don't have any tattoos." She leaned her head back so she could look at him.

"Who said I liked tattoos?" She asked. He glared at her, and her grin widened. Until he pushed her head with his shoulder, and it and her shoulders dropped into his lap. He smirked at her, then looked at the ice cream. He took the spoon out of her hands and ate an enormous mouthful. Keeva's eyes widened, and she smacked him.

"Hey!"

"Wha'?" He asked after he'd swallowed most of it. She rolled her eyes and took the ice cream away.

"It's melting." When she came back she walked straight through to the other doorway. "G'night."

"Ye don't want ta finish watchin' it?" He asked, pointing at the TV. She shook her head.

"They're all too fuckin' plastic." She turned the corner, then reappeared after a moment, a serious look on her face. "An' they don't have tattoos." She left him staring openmouthed at the corner for the next five minutes.

* * *

Conner smirked, watching his brother over the paper. He was completely distracted, alternating from rubbing the tattoo on his neck to the cross and word on his hand. He looked up at his brother, and arched his eyebrows.

"What?"

Conner fought down a wider smirk and looked back down at his paper. "Nothin'."

"Murph. . ."

"What?" He froze when Keeva stumbled in and over to the coffee machine.

"Morning." Conner said cheerfully. He only got a grunt of annoyance in response as she stumbled back out, cursing in several languages as the coffee spilled out of the mug and onto her hands. He looked back over at his brother, and grinned. Murphy was still staring out the door after her, a small smile on his face. He turned to pick back up his coffee, and caught Conner's eye.

"What?" He asked, his smile not fading.

"You're so far fuckin' gone."

"What're ya talkin' about?" Murphy asked.

"You. Her. Yer both too fuckin' thick fer yer own good."

"What the fuck're ya talkin' about Conn?"

"Ya like her."

"Like hell."

"Then stop fuckin' smilin." Murphy fought a brief battle with his face, then glared at Conner, though the effect was ruined slightly but his grin. "See?"

"Shut up."

"Ya know she's goin' ta go back."

The smile dropped. "What're ya talkin' about?"

Conner folded the paper and tossed it up on the table. "When this is all over, and we find her sister? She's goin' ta go home. We can't keep her here." The only response from Murphy was him getting up and leaving. He shouldered past Keeva in the doorway, leaving her staring after him for a moment before turning back to Conner.

"What was that all about?" Her accent was thicker with sleep. She poured herself a second cup of coffee.

"What?"

"Murph. He looked pretty angry." She leaned against the counter. Conner shook his head, picking up the paper again.

"Nothin' he didn't already know."

* * *

The three of them were sitting on the sofa watching the TV when Smecker and Da came back that evening. Keeva was asleep, stretched out on top of the boys. Her legs were in Conner's lap, and her head was resting on Murphy's shoulder. The boys saw the two, and raised their fingers to their lips simultaneously. Almost like they'd rehearsed it.

"Wake her up." Smecker whispered. She raised a hand, waving him off. She didn't open her eyes though.

"Shut it." She said. "I'm awake. I almost had these two convinced otherwise though." She smirked as her eyes fluttered open, blinking in the harsh light from the naked bulb in the ceiling.

"Yer fuckin' soaked man." Conner said with a grin. Smecker glared at him, pushing his wet hair out of his face.

"It's rainin'." Keeva said, shifting a little on the sofa.

"How'd you know that?" Conner asked. "Ya haven't been outside all day."

"It started last night." She said. "An' I can still hear it when tha two of ye aren't yakin away."

"Whatever." Smecker said. "My lead's taking me out of town for the next couple of days, and I need you to _promise_ me that you won't slip away from these two again." She set her jaw.

"Paul-"

"Keeva, please just fucking humor me here, okay? If you get hurt, your sister will have my ass on a platter."

"What happened to this not being about me being able to protect myself?"

"It's not." Smecker assured her. "If you don't lay low, this could all blow up in our faces. And I like my face right as it fuckin is."

"We don' need this ta get any _more_ complicated than it already is darlin'." Da said, sitting down on the coffee table. He put a hand on her knee. "Now I'm goin' with Smecker boys."

"What?" They asked simultaneously.

"Well, this isn't _entirely_ legal." Smecker said. "I'm taking a sick day tomorrow, and all my calls are being forwarded to my cell phone. No one'll ever know. Hopefully when I come back, I'll know exactly where your sister is."

"Paul two days from now is-"

"A week since Brigh was taken. I know what the note said. I'll be back way before then. Probably tomorrow night. Don't worry about it."

"All right." Da got up and turned. "Let's go Paul." Keeva shifted a little, biting her lip. Murphy glanced down at her, and his arm slid from the top of the sofa and down around her shoulders. She reached up and got a grip on his arm as the two men left.

She didn't speak for a while, no one did. After the movie ended, she sighed.

"So, I heard it's your birthdays tomorrow." They just nodded. There was a long period of silence where they all just stared at the TV. "Look, I'm sure they'll be fine."

"Ya don't sound too fuckin' sure." Conner said, lifting her legs off of him. He grabbed his coat and stalked off. Keeva made to get up, but Murphy held her in place.

"Let him fuckin' go." He said. She nodded, and he let her sit up.

His shoulder suddenly felt very, very cold.

"You should talk ta him." She said after a moment. "He's prob'ly out smoking in the alley."

He was silent for a moment, then pulled a hand down his face and grabbed his coat. "Fuck it." He shut the door behind him.

Conner was right where Keeva had guessed he would be, and as Murphy walked out, he handed him a second, lit cigarette. Neither of them had to say a word about it, they both knew he'd have been out sooner or later.

"She was just trying to fuckin' help." Murphy said. Conner shook his head, taking a long drag before replying.

"I know Murph." He turned to look at his brother through the pouring rain. "An' here I thought _you_ were the fuckin' emotional one." Murphy smirked, leaning against the wall in an attempt to stave off most of the rain.

"Look. Yer not the only one who's worried about them ya know." Conner nodded as Murphy took a long drag.

"That's not the only thing." He said, looking sideways at his twin. "I'm sorry about what I said this mornin'. I know it upset ye."

"It wasn't anythin' I didn't already know." He let his head fall back and hit the wall behind him. " 'Sides. She doesn't feel the same." He leaned his head forward again, looking at the ground.

Conner smacked him on the back of the head. "Are ya fuckin' blind?" He asked. Murphy didn't answer. "She likes ye, ya dumbass!"

"Yeah right." Murphy muttered.

"Okay, then what was the remark about the tattoos last night?" Murphy looked up at him sharply. "Oh come on, the walls aren't that fuckin' thick, and I woke up when she got out o' bed." Murphy rolled his eyes. "An' have ya noticed how she always stands closer ta _you_?" He didn't answer him again, just took a deep breath. "_And_ that she doesn't get fuckin' upset when _I_ yell at her, but you so much as raise yer fuckin' voice and she nearly starts cryin'?" When Murphy didn't answer this time, he smacked him again.

"What the fuck was that fer?" Murphy snapped.

"Fer bein' fuckin' blind! She feels the same fuckin' way, but tha both of ye are too fuckin' insecure ta do a fuckin' thing about it, and-" A scream from upstairs had them both dropping their cigarettes and running back inside. There was a loud thump from the bathroom, and Keeva came flying out, her eyes wide. She threw herself at Murphy, muttering incoherently into his shirt.

"What the fuck?" Murphy asked, wrapping his arms around her as she latched herself onto his soaking wet shirt.

Conner stuck his head in the bathroom, then whirled around and glared at her. "What the fuck were ya screaming about?"

"Spider!" She finally managed. Conner smacked himself in the head.

"Are you fuckin' serious?"

"Kill it!" She screeched. Conner looked at Murphy, who was smirking.

"Go ahead." The darker haired twin said, his smirk turning into a full fledged grin.

Conner's eyes shifted back toward the bathroom, then he suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Keeva by the shoulders, swinging them both around behind Murphy.

"No, you go on." Murphy made a face at him, and pulled off his shoe. There was a crash and a moment later, he walked out, smirking evilly.

"Smashed spider anyone?" Keeva shrieked, and she and Conner scrambled over each other to get away from Murphy's boot. Keeva managed to get away first, and sprinted down the hall.

"Hey! Get back here!" Murphy jumped over his twin, and ran after her, dropping the boot. He rounded the corner and managed to catch up with her. She let out a little shriek as he grabbed her around the waist and spun her around to face Conner. "What da ya say Conn?" He asked. "Tickle 'er?" Conner grinned evilly, slowly walking toward the two of them as Keeva pulled at Murphy's arm. But even she couldn't keep the grin off her face.

"You two better not!" She exclaimed. "Or I'll unleash my black belt skills on ya!"

"Ooh, we're fuckin' scared." Murphy said. And used his other arm to pin her arms to her chest.

"All righ'." She said. "But don't say I didn't warn ya." As Conner stepped forward again, she planted a bare foot in the middle of his chest, and pushed, sending both boys off balance. Conner stumbled backward, grabbing the door frame to keep himself from falling over. Murphy landed on his back, still holding onto her with one hand. She grabbed his wrist and twisted, just enough to get him to let go before jumping to her feet. They stared at her.

"Well, that was, um. . ."

"Interesting." Conner finished, rubbing his chest. "An' let's never do it again."

"Don't try ta fuckin' tickle me an' we won't have ta." She said, flopping down on the sofa.

"I'm goin ta get out o' these fuckin' clothes." Murphy muttered, and slipped out of the room. Conner just shook his head and followed him. When they came back, they were wearing dark boxers and T-shirts of the same color. They flopped down on either side of her, and she turned, peering at Murphy. He raised his eyebrows at her.

"What?"

"Yer hair's stickin' up." He rolled his eyes and tried to flatten it, but it just kept popping back up. Conner shook his head.

"I'm goin' ta bed." He said. "Kee, yer stayin' in Da's room tonight. No sense in anyone stayin' on tha sofa. G'night both of ya." With that, he got up and left the room. Keeva shifted on the sofa, and after a couple minutes, glanced at the clock.

12:02

"Happy Birthday." She said, and got to her feet. "I'll see you in the-" She paused, and shook her head. "Morning."


	8. Chapter 8

Erm... Sorry about the long wait to update. I kind of got caught up in PSATs. I don't understand why everyone makes such a big freakin deal out of them, they were so easy anyway! So yeah. I'm over that, and I'll try to have the next chapter by the end of the week.

* * *

"Wait, run that past us again?"

"I'm going ta McGinty's."

"Why?"

"Look, ya can either question me an' stay here, or come along." She turned and headed out the door. The brothers looked at each other, then raced after her, pulling their coats on as they caught up with her halfway down the street.

"Yer fuckin' insane, ya know that?"

"Aye." She grinned. "But you guys knew that, didn't ya?"

"Well, yeah."

"Exactly." Murphy pushed open the door, an Doc looked up at them.

"B-b-boys! K-Keeva! W-w-what a sur- what a sur- oh, Fuck! Ass!" Keeva shook her head.

"Hey Doc, ya think I could use yer kitchen?"

"S-s-sure."

"Wait, what?" She ignored the boys as she followed Doc around behind the bar and through a set of swinging doors. Conner turned to look at Murphy.

"Ya got any idea what she's doin'?"

"Not a fuckin' clue."

They'd gone through two beers by the time she came out again, whispering to Doc, who was smiling at her.

". . .Thirty five minutes. No more, okay?" He nodded. "Great. We'll be back later then."

"S-s-see you later then." Keeva strode out of the bar, leaving the boys scrambling to follow.

"What the fuck're ya doin?" Murphy asked.

"It's a surprise." She said simply. "We need to be back at six."

"Are ya goin' ta tell us anythin'?" Conner asked. She shook her head. "Nope."

At six o'clock, they were back at Doc's, and Keeva disappeared into the kitchen again, leaving Murphy and Conner to have another couple beers as people began coming in.

* * *

Around seven, she reappeared, licking something green off her fingers. She tapped Doc on the shoulder, and the turned to look at her. As she whispered something in his ear, she glanced over at the boys, who were watching her carefully, and flashed them a smile.

Murphy looked over at his fair-hared counterpart and raised his eyebrows. "Should we be suspicious?"

"More than a little." Conner said, nodding as he lifted his beer. As Keeva disappeared into the kitchen again, Doc raised his arms.

"E-e-everyone! S-s-s-shut up! Fuck! Ass!" The bar fell into an expectant silence. "N-n-now today is these b-b-boys' fuckin' birthday." The twins choked on their respective beers, slamming them down on the table. "An' we've g-g-got a special surprise for 'em!" The doors to the kitchen opened, Keeva walking backwards out of them, something nestled in her arms. She turned around, and walked straight over to the bar, and set the large cake down in front of her. The bar stared at her.

"How's abut a round of 'Happy Birthday' for 'em?" She asked. Several snickers came from the patrons, and she gave them the evil eye. "You'll get cake." The entire bar burst into song as Conner and Murphy laughed mercilessly, holding onto each other for support.

Keeva was positioned between the two of them as they walked back to the boys' apartment, with an arm from each of them slung over her shoulders. After they'd all eaten cake they'd split.

The twins were getting tired of birthday punches.

"Ya didn't have ta do that." Conner said as they approached the building, breaking the comfortable silence that had descended over them since they left the bar.

"Well, I wanted to." Conner shook his head, lifting his arm from her shoulders and heading inside. She made to follow him, but Murphy caught her arm.

"Keeva, wait." Her breath caught in her throat as she turned to look at him. She shivered slightly as he pulled her closer to him, and it had nothing to do with the cool, damp air.

"Yeah?"

"I-" He faltered and swallowed, unconsciously wetting his lips. "Keeva, ya really didn't have ta." She was about to make a smart-ass comment, but then she caught his eyes.

"Yes I did." On an impulse, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. After a second, she pulled away and nearly smiled at the confused look on his face. "You guys have done so much for me already. I had to do something." He nodded, and opened his mouth again.

"Keeva, I wanted to tell you somethin', but I'm not-"

"Murph! Keeva!" They looked up to see Conner's head sticking out a window, looking down at them. It was just a tiny dark circle against the inky blue of the sky. "Da's back!" His head disappeared and Keeva turned to Murphy, her eyes wide and nearly devoid of emotion. After a second where he was concerned she was going to fall over, she turned and sprinted inside the building.

By the time he got up and closed the door behind him, she was almost through berating Smecker with questions. He stepped up behind her, and clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Let the man answer, would ya?" Something warm and wet touched his hand, and he yanked it away, wiping it on his jeans. "Ya licked me fuckin' hand!!"

"Don't put it over my mouth again." She made a face at him, and he shook his head, and glared at the three men who were now laughing at him.

"Paul!" Smecker stopped laughing, and nodded, chewing on his lip.

"I found her." The next thing anyone knew, Keeva was across the room, holding Smecker in a tight hug. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

"Get the fuck off." He said, but he was smiling as he held the girl at arms length, a firm grip on her shoulders. "Keeva, I'm going to ask you to stay-"

"No!" She knocked his hands away. "I'm not going to sit around and wait while someone else rescues her!"

"Keeva, please. You're too close, and you're fucking emotional!"

"I'm only fuckin' emotional 'cause yer tryin' ta tell me ta stay behind!"

"Keeva, I will have them knock you out!"

"I'd like ta see them fuckin' try!"

"Keeva-"

"Paul, no! I am not staying behind! I _need_ to do this!"

"Smecker-"

"Murphy, stay out of this!"

"All we're tryin ta say here is that she should come." Conner said. Smecker looked from one MacManus to the next, then shook his head.

"You're making a mistake."

"No we're not." Murphy assured him.

"We know what she's talkin' about. This is her sibling, her sister. She _needs_ ta be there fer her. Ta rescue her. Ta be able to calm her down and assure tha girl that we're not goin' ta try an' kill her."

Smecker deflated. He'd completely forgotten that Brigh didn't know the MacManus men. Keeva had just fit in so perfectly with the family that he'd almost forgotten that she hadn't always been there.

"Fine, but she'd better come back in one fucking piece." Smecker slammed out of the apartment.

* * *

Da took the sofa that night. He said something about it being better for his back, but none of them were really buying it. Not that they tried to debate it with the older man, they all knew they'd loose.

Keeva was staring at the ceiling, trying to grasp at the fragile strands of sleep that kept evading her. She was anxious, jittery. Which is why she jumped and fell out of bed when the soft knock sounded on the door. As she picked herself up off the floor and calmed down the door opened and Murphy stuck his head in.

"Hey." She said softly.He gave her a soft smile, closing the door behind him.

"Couldn't sleep?" He asked. She shook her head. "Yer fuckin' shaking." His large, warm hands closed over hers, and she felt a rush of heat surge through her body. She shivered. "Are ya all right?"

She nodded, taking a shaky breath. As nervous as she was, it was all nerves. Her stomach was doing butterflies as she stared at his T-shirt covered chest, only inches away from her face. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her into him. She pressed her face into his shoulder and inhaled his scent. A mix of cigarettes, beer and something that was distinctly Murphy.Her hands stopped shaking as she relaxed completely against him, feeling completely safe and protected in his arms.

"Keeva?"

"Hm?" She didn't really feel like talking.

"I wanted to say somethin' earlier, but we kind of got interrupted." She nodded, feeling his shirt rub against her face. "And I'm not quite sure how ta say it."

She pulled away enough to look up at him. "Then just say it." Her stomach had suddenly twisted itself into several million little knots.

He shook his head slowly and glanced swiftly skyward. "I-I can't." He whispered, and looked back down at her.

"Murph. . ." She started to step away, but his arms tightened, holding her in place.

"Keeva." The way he said it made a fresh shiver race down her spine, a hundred butterflies join the knots in her stomach. "I don't really know what fuckin' much about ya." She unconsciously wet her lips. "But I-" He stopped, and closed his eyes. "Fuck, this is stupid."

His lips descended on hers, capturing them in a kiss more delicate than she would have expected. Her stomach felt like it had evaporated from her body as she responded. After a long minute, he pulled back.

"What I was tryin' ta say was I think I love ye." Her heart leapt into her throat, and her hand snaked up to the back of his neck, pulling him back to her. After another long moment, she was the one to pull back, both of them breathing a little harder than normal.

"I think I might love ya too." The corners of her mouth turned up at the surprise on his face.

"What?"

"Come on, like it's that fuckin' hard ta believe Murphy." He swallowed hard. There was something about the way she said his name.

This time when their lips met, hers parted, enveloping his. He responded, deepening the kiss as his tongue slid into her mouth. She stood up on her toes, pressing herself flush against him, and he pulled her against him even firmer. She suddenly found herself lifted off the floor, and Murphy was moving. She slid her legs around his waist, and hung her arms around his neck. He reached the edge of the bed and broke the kiss, dropping her down on the mattress. He just stood there for a moment, just staring down at her. She'd landed in such a way that her hair was spilled out around her head like a dark, gently curling halo in a vibrant contrast to the white pillowcase.

"Murph?"

He gave her a smile softer than she could have ever imagine coming from him. "Christ, you're fuckin' beautiful." A shiver ran through her body as he lowered himself over her, and pressed his lips to hers again. Only this time the kiss was passionate, reserving and holding back nothing. She responded, sliding her arms up around his neck, and pulling him into her harder. His hand wandered down her arms and slid onto her waist. His hands found her hip bone just above the top of her jeans and his thumbs traced their line up under her shirt. His fingers danced lightly over her sides as he slid her shirt up, revealing her stomach to his hands, which were tracing invisible pictures on her skin, sending shivers up through her body. She moaned lightly into his mouth, and he pulled away for a moment, put not too far. His eyes opened just enough to see her through dark eyelashes. He reached down and pulled her shirt up over her head. As her arms slid back down, her hands traced a path down from his shoulders to the belt of his jeans. He crushed his mouth to hers again. She slid her hands up his stomach, pulling his shirt with her. As she reached his ribs, he groaned against her mouth and pulled back far enough to allow her to pull his shirt off, then he was on her again.

Before she knew it, he had her jeans slid most of the way down her legs. She shifted under him, kicking them off. One of his arms curled around her back, lifting her torso up off the bed so she was straddling him. Her hands fumbled with the belt of his jeans, and she broke the kiss, turning her head so she could see his belt. But as his lips descended on her neck, she momentarily forgot what she was doing. Then she finally managed to get his belt undone and shoved him down on the bed, pulling his pants off. As she hooked her thumbs into the waistband of his dark boxers, his hands grabbed hers, pulling them away. He shifted, and she found herself once again on her back, pinned underneath him as he grinned wolfishly at her. She grinned right back.

"How'd I know you'd like to be on top?" She whispered, then gasped as his lips made contact with the spot where her neck met her shoulder. Her back arched against him, and his hands slipped underneath her, unclasping her bra. She quickly pulled it off, and his thumbs hooked over the waistband of her panties, pulling them slowly down her legs. She shifted, moaning softly as he trailed kisses down between her breasts and to her navel. After he'd slipped them off her feet, he pulled off his boxers and kissed her hard on the mouth. Her slim hands slid down his chest and stomach.

He inhaled sharply as her fingers closed around him, and his mouth left her neck dropping to cover a nipple. She gasped, arching against him. Her breathing hitched as she squirmed underneath him. His hands found her hipbones again, holding her tightly against the bed. She tried to move, to relieve the growing pressure inside of her, but he had her pinned, and moved onto her other nipple. So she slid her other hand down as she slowly stroked him, feeling him go even harder. He groaned against her breast, sending a wave of pleasure through her body. She inhaled shakily as she trembled under his hands. He pulled away from her breast and she pressed her mouth to his again. After a moment he pulled away, trailing kissed down her neck once more. She gasped, the need for him building inside of her.

"Murphy." She breathed. He raised himself so he was positioned above her, just inches away from her.

"Ya sure?" He asked. She nodded, pressing her hips to his. They both knew what she wanted, what they both wanted. He nodded and guided himself to her. Her arms tightened around him as he entered slowly, she inhaled sharply as he pushed into her, exhaling as he stopped. She was breathing hard, holding onto him.

"Don't stop." She breathed. He claimed her mouth again with his as he pulled out, then pushed himself further into her. She arched into him as he buried himself completely inside of her. She moaned softly with each thrust, and it slowly became louder with each one. He clamped his mouth over hers in an attempt to stifle her slightly as he picked up the pace, not forgetting how thin the walls were. Her legs wrapped around his waist, pulling him even harder into her. With each movement her thighs tightened, and she arched into him even more.

As he felt himself building, he broke their kiss and looked down at her. She truly was a vision, her eyes closed and face tensed in ecstasy, dark hair spilling around her face and shoulders. He breathed, "I love ye" In her ear. She nodded, breathing too hard to say anything else. He took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers as he pressed her into the mattress. Her mouth opened as she shuddered under him, and he silenced her cry with a kiss as they climaxed together, gripping each other as their bodies shuddered in unison. Murphy collapsed on top of her, breathing hard. Keeva shifted somehow so they were lying, facing each other. She didn't pull herself off of him, instead she gave him a long, passionate kiss before pulling back and whispering "I love ye too Murphy."

* * *

I swear this next update will be sooner.


	9. Chapter 9

_Hm... End of the week yeah right. I keep forgetting o update this story because I'm not actively writing it. Gr. Anyway, this one's longer, I think. _

* * *

When she woke up the next morning, spooned against him, she knew. She knew right then and there that she would, and could never love a man the same way she loved Murphy. She hadn't really realized it before he'd kissed her. All she'd known was that they were more than friends, and as much as she loved Conner, it had always been different with Murphy.

Murphy _was _different. And she wasn't going to try to explain it in words. She couldn't.

He shifted behind her, and his hand lightly brushed the hair off of her neck, making her shiver as he kissed his way from her shoulder up to her jaw before she turned and accepted a full kiss from him. He smiled down at her, tightening the arm that was draped over her waist.

"Do you really have to go today?" He asked. She sighed, and started to pull away, but he held her tightly against him. "I'm not going to stop you." He whispered. "But I wish I could wrap ya up in a little fuckin' box and ship ya back to Ireland where ya'd be safe from all this."

"Hey, they'll be no wrapped-Keevas around here, thank ya very much." She said with a smirk.

"I'm tryin' ta be fuckin' serious here." He said. Her smile dropped. "Ye could get hurt, or even fuckin' killed."

"So could _you_." She said, sitting up. He didn't try to stop her. She grabbed a shirt and yanked it on over her head, and started searching for other clothes.

"Keeva, I didn't mean it like that. I know ya fuckin' know ya could get hurt, but. . ." He sighed. "I think it's _just_ hittin' me."

"Starting to with you hadn't fuckin' backed me up last night?" She asked, her eyes flashing. Murphy stood up swiftly, and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"I can understand why yer fuckin' doin this!" She stopped, the button on her pants halfway through. "A sibling's someone important. An' no matter how fuckin' much they annoy ye, ya can't fuckin' leave 'em." Keeva took a breath and slipped the button all the way through.

"Sorry I got all defensive." She said. He shook his head, bending down to give her a quick kiss.

"Yer forgiven." He said, and pulled on his pants and slipped out the door. After she'd found her other sock, she followed. When she got to the kitchen, everyone was already there. Murphy was sitting on the counter, drinking his usual mug of coffee, and Conner and Da were sitting at the table, reading the paper. Keeva got herself a mug of coffee and left the room, choosing instead to sit on the sofa. In the kitchen, she felt like she was interrupting something, a ritual for the MacManus men on a day before a 'job'. But for some reason it didn't feel as tense as she would have expected. She would have thought that they would be tense and jumpy. They weren't it was almost like they were bored.

But she knew they weren't. She may have only known the boys a week, but she could pick up on the subtle hints of their moods. Murphy had the strongest signals. They were hidden in his movements. When he was worried, they were short and erratic, and when he was calm they were smooth, almost graceful.

Conner was harder. While Murphy's emotions were seething on the surface like river rapids, Conner's feelings were buried, like a waterfall in a cave. You weren't expecting it, and before you knew it, you were soaked and being dragged down into the pool below.

It took them the same about of time to snap though. Murphy, you could tell he was getting annoyed, like the distant rumble of thunder from a summer storm that makes you run for cover. Conner was more of a tornado. You couldn't really tell where and when it was going to hit, it just did.

Why was she comparing them to storms again? Shaking her head, she took a long sip of coffee, and found her thoughts drifting to her family. Her heart sank.

She was going to have to go home. She was going to have to leave Murphy and Conner. And Da. She would miss him too, even though he hadn't said all that much to her. As happy as the thought of going back to her family was, she couldn't help the overwhelming sadness that sunk her happy mood. The sofa moved as someone sat down, and she looked up, meeting Murphy's eyes.

"Ya didn't have ta fuckin leave." She managed a small smile, but dropped his gaze.

"I-I didn't want to interrupt yer routine."

"What, ya mean sittin' around the fuckin kitchen and broodin'?" He asked. She couldn't help a small smirk. "Come on. It's somethin' else, isn't it?" She swallowed, and noticed her breathing had become shallow. "Keeva?"

She shook her head. "Either way, after tonight I'm goin' ta have ta leave." Murphy's hands covered her own, which were holding her mug tightly.

"Keeva-" She pulled her hands out of his and took a long sip of coffee. It felt good as it burned its way down her throat, taking the pain away from her heart and pulling her attention to her scalded throat. "Keeva, look at me." She lifted her eyes to his, and found that he had moved closer to her. Why hadn't she noticed? "We'll make it work. I swear." She fought the smile threatening to form on her face, the corners of her mouth working furiously to stop it from coming.

He thought it was cute. He leaned forward and captured her lips with his for a moment, then leaned back into the sofa, a satisfied grin on his face. Conner came into the room a second later, taking a drink of coffee. His eyes swept over to the two of them, and she saw the skin around his eyes crinkle over the top of the mug as he sat down on the other end of the sofa, so she could tell he was grinning. She shook her head, taking a sip of her own coffee.

"So, you two have fun last night?" She inhaled some of her coffee and started choking. Murphy snatched the now-empty mug from her hands and put it down on the table.

"What?!" Conner smirked evilly as she stared at him, still coughing lightly.

"Oh, come on. The both of ye were practically glowin' this mornin'." He pointed at Keeva. "'Specially ye." She rolled her eyes, shifting as Da came in the room, dropping a large duffel bag on the small table in front of the sofa.

"I'll be back later boys." He said, and left without another word.

"He never says much, does he?" She asked. The boys shook their heads.

"Not really. He was in fuckin' prison most of our lives, and since we're all grown up," Conner grinned. "He figures our Ma did a fine job and just wants ta be here fer us when we need him." Murphy smirked.

"Not that we could find 'im if we _did_." Murphy said. Conner rolled his eyes and opened the bag, setting six handguns out on the table as he moved the bag to the floor, and sat down on the opposite side of the table.

"Now, be careful when-" Conner stared to explain them to Keeva, but she had already picked one up, and had ejected the clip. She left that in her lap, and removed the top part of the chamber. "Okay, maybe I don't have ta say anythin'." She made a face at him, putting it back together quickly.

"Wow." Murphy said, leaning back against the sofa. "That's kinda. . ." He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Don't spare me ears Murph." Conner said, smirking as he picked up a gun. Keeva ignored them as she found a cleaning kit, and put it in her lap. She opened the chamber again, and Murphy shook his head.

"Never mind Conn." He said. "Never mind."

"Were ya goin' ta say hot Murph?" Conner asked, and his brother smacked him.

* * *

They spent the next few hours cleaning the weapons, exchanging a light banter.

Around noon, Keeva finished the last gun and set it on the table, stretching out her stiff limbs. She rested her heels on the table, crossing her legs at the ankles and leaning back against the back of the sofa. Suddenly, Murphy's head dropped into her lap. She dropped her hand, and poked him in the middle of the forehead.

"An' what're _ye _doin'?"

"Gettin' comfortable." He replied with a smirk. She poked him again. "Ow!" She grinned, and he mock-glared at her.

"Hey! Could ya cut it out!"

Murphy leaned over and smacked Conner upside the head. Conner retaliated, smacking him on the side of the head. Murphy glared at him, and kicked him in the knee with his socked foot. Conner kicked him right back. They glared at each other, and Keeva grabbed Murphy's hand before he could do anything else.

"Why don't we go out an' get some lunch?" She asked. The boys grinned, and rushed around the room, trying to find their boots.

"Hey! That's my fuckin' boot!"

"No, it's _mine_."

"Not it's not!"

"Yes it is!"

"Not, it's not!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it's not!"

"Yes it is!"

Keeva put her head in her hands. She was really trusting her life to these guys? It had seemed like a good idea even an hour before, but now she was starting to doubt their sanity.

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yer boots are exactly the same fuckin' size!" Keeva exclaimed, jumping to her feet and stalking to their bedroom, where they both had a hand on a boot.

"But I don't want 'im wearin' _my_ fuckin boot!"

She rolled her eyes, and took a step to the side out of the doorway. Her foot caught another boot and she tumbled to the ground.

"Here's the other fuckin' boot." She threw it at them as she got to her feet.

"Oh, that _is _yours!" She grabbed her jacket and pulled it on as the boys came out, the proper boots on each of their feet. She shook her head as they walked down the street, positioning themselves protectively on either side of her. She sighed heavily.

"Guys, I don't need fuckin' bodyguards." She said. With his next step, Murphy moved sideways and slid his arm around her waist. Conner took an extra long step to he was walking half a pace in front of them. She slid her own arm around Murphy, who grinned at her.

"That better?" He asked. She grinned back.

"Much." She said. After another few moments, she grinned. "I don't fuckin' believe it!" She exclaimed, and pulled away from Murphy, running into a small corner pizza place. The twins were right behind her. The man at the counter looked up, his eyes widening as he apparently recognized her. He was older, probably in his late fifties or early sixties, and had a stocky build, and thick white hair.

"Oh my Lord!" He exclaimed, throwing down the towel he was using. "Keeva Dolan!" His Greek accent was pronounced, and he threw his arms around her in an embrace. "It has been much too long!" He pulled back and gave her a kiss on each cheek. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, we were looking for a place to eat, and I saw your place!"

"It has been too long." The man gave her a kiss on each cheek again. Keeva found she couldn't stop grinning.

"Most definitely." One of the brothers cleared their throats behind her. She ignored the stares from the other patrons in the crowded restaurant and turned to look at them. "Oh, I'm sorry. Guys, this is Nikolas. I used to waitress here, when I first got here."

"Best waitress I've ever had." Nikolas said.

She smacked him on the arm. "Shut it. Nikolas, this is Conner." They shook hands.

"Pleasure." He said with a small grin.

"And this fuckin' idiot is his brother Murphy."

"Hey!" Nikolas shook Murphy's hand too, then leaned back, his eyes on the darker-haired twin. He then looked at Keeva, grinning madly.

"So, you have finally found yourself a good Irish man?" Murphy blanched.

"Told ye it was fuckin' obvious." Conner joked.

"So, what will it be?" Nikolas asked. Keeva chewed on her lip, eyeing the menu.

"How about some bacon pizza?" She asked. "That's new." Nikolas nodded, and motioned to a booth toward the doors to the kitchen.

"Your old favorite booth is open." She grinned, and grabbed Murphy's hand, dragging him behind her. Conner snickered, and slid into the seat across from them. He was facing away from the front door and toward the doors to the kitchen.

A waitress approached them, as Keeva was talking softly with Murphy. "What can I get cha?" She asked. Conner judged her to be about thirty, with dark blonde hair and brilliant hazel eyes. He smiled at her.

"Well, I donno." He said. Keeva turned, and gasped.

"Maggie?" The waitress turned away from Conner, and her eyes widened.

"Kee-Kee?" Murphy choked and Keeva smacked him on the back of the head as she tried to get out of the booth.

"Mags!" Keeva threw her arms around the woman's neck, and they hugged each other. "Oh my god!" He held her out an an arms length. "I can't fuckin' believe you're still working here!"

Maggie smacked Keeva, grinning. "Watch your language!" She peered around Keeva at the two boys, grinning.

"Oh! Sorry Mags." She said. "Mags, this is Murphy." Maggie shook his hand. "And his brother Conner."

"So. Which one did you snag?" Keeva smacked Maggie's arm, and the woman's eyebrows rose. "Or was it both of them?" It was Conner's turn to choke. Keeva smacked him on the back of the head, and he smacked her right back on the arm. So Maggie smacked him right back. He glared at her, and she grinned. "You should know better than to hit a lady."

"If she's a lady, I'm a fuckin' leprechaun."

"Three root beers." Keeva quickly changed the topic, and Maggie nodded.

"I'll be right back." Keeva nodded and slid back into her seat. Murphy slid his arm around her shoulders.

"So how long did ya work here?" Murphy asked. Keeva shrugged.

"About five years."

"Really?" Their pizza and drink arrived at the same time, and they dug in. About halfway through the pizza, Nikolas came and sat with them. He and Keeva soon fell deep into a deep discussion about what she'd been doing recently.

"You never did tell me why you quit." Nikolas said after they finished their pizza. Keeva sighed.

"Well, my sister got herself a job, and she left me to take care of her daughter. I didn't have the time anymore. She was making more than I was here, so I had to leave." Nikolas nodded.

"Well, if you have raised her, she must be a very beautiful child." The older man said, and put his hand on her shoulder. "As I did the last time I saw you, I wish you well in your life." He turned his gaze on the boys. "Take care of this one. She is one special girl."

"What makes ya say that?" Murphy asked. Nikolas smiled.

"She's the best." Maggie said, coming over with their check, which she set on the table. "While she was working here, I was going out with this _really_ hot biker, but when he got drunk he used to use me as a punching bag. So Keeva here," She put a hand on the younger woman's shoulders. "Decided to show him what being a punching bag felt like. I haven't seen him since." Keeva grinned at her old friend.

Conner cleared his throat. "I hate ta break this up, but Kee? We've got ta get fuckin' goin'." She nodded, and gave her two old friends gigantic hugs.

"Don't wait four years ta come see us again." Maggie said. Keeva flashed her a grin as Conner made off with the check to pay before she could say anything.

* * *

Keeva was having trouble getting her shoulder holster on, and it was annoying her to no end. Murphy poked his head in the bathroom, and smirked at her, leaning against the frame. She glared at his reflection in the mirror.

"Shut it." She said. He smirked.

"I didn't say a fuckin thing."

"Ye didn't have to. So you can either stand there and smirk, or you can help me with this." He raised his eyebrows, stepping up behind her. She inhaled sharply as he pressed the left side of his face into her hair.

"I _was_ enjoying tha view." He said. She tried to turn to swat him, but his hands caught her arms at the elbows, effectively holding her in place. "You're fuckin' beautiful." She shivered as his whisper ghosted past her ear, pressing her black-clad body back into him. He grinned and fastened her shoulder holster for her.

She did look nice. He though she should wear black more often. Especially tight black clothes. She had on tight black pants that hugged her long legs, and her small black sneakers. On top she wore a skintight black long-sleeved turtleneck, and her dark hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail.

"Yer not too bad yerself." She said, turning around to face him. Before she could say anything else, his lips were covering hers, demanding and harsh. It took the breath out of her chest, but she responded, sliding her tongue between his lips.

"Okay! I really did _not_ need ta see that! Fuck!" Keeva pulled away from Murphy to see Conner stumbling back down the hall, his hand over his eyes. She smirked.

"What'd ya want Conn?"

"I was goin' ta tell ya we need ta get goin', but-"

"Then let's go." The three of them walked into the living room to find Da waiting for them. But he wasn't armed.

"Da? What's goin' on?" Conner asked. Da gave the three of them a smile.

"I'm gettin' too old for this boys." He said. "And I'll just start holdin' ya up."

"But Da-"

"Ya don't need to be worryin' about me keepin' up tanight." He said. "I am not a young man boys."

"Da-"

"Please. Go. You don't need me tonight." After a moment she saw that the boys weren't going to move. So she grabbed their sleeves and pulled them out the door after her.

"Keeva, we've got ta go back! He's-"

"He's made up his fuckin' mind Murph." She said. "Let it go."

"But-But-"

"Keeva." She looked Conner straight in the eyes, and nodded. She knew he understood why Da didn't want to come with them, and it had to be _him_ who set Murphy straight. She waited for them in the alley, going over their plan in her head. She was going to go around back of the house, and they would create a distraction for her to find her sister and get the hell out.


	10. Chapter 10

It was supposed to work. She was just supposed to slip in. She wasn't supposed to get caught, and she wasn't supposed to be standing in front of Bengino Yakavetta as he smirked at her, walking forward.

"What exactly were you expecting to do?" He asked, trailing his finger down the side of her face. She turned her head away from his touch. She felt nauseous. "Waltz in here and shoot us all? Have your little friends help?" She stiffened even further in the grip of the two burly men holding her. What was it with mob guys and huge muscles? Insanely large muscles weren't even that fucking attractive.

"Ah yes. We caught your little fucking friends trying to sneak in through the basement. Not very imaginative, are they?" He cupped her chin with his hand. "Not like your sister, of course. No. Your sister has tried some very creative ways to escape from us." He smiled, and nodded to the guards. "Take her away. I have some fucking annoying Irish pricks to take care of." With her hands tied behind her back, and the men holding her so her feet weren't touching the floor (God, how she hated being short!) She could do little to escape.

* * *

Murphy and Conner fought the handcuffs they were in, cuffed to the chairs, their holsters emptied. Bengino Yakavetta stood in the doorway, grinning at them.

Conner had a split lip. He'd tried to bite the man who put the gag in his mouth, and the force of the punch had been enough to split his lip, and knock his chair over.

Murphy on the other hand, had tried everything humanly possible to get himself out of the handcuffs, and there were bloody red lines all over his wrists, and a shallow cut on his forehead from his attempts.

Bengino nodded to the men behind the boys, who removed their gags.

"I'm goin' ta fuckin' kill ye!" Murphy spat out. To their surprise, Yakavetta smiled.

"I am going to ask you boys a question." He said, his Italian accent thick. "And I want you to answer me truthfully. Okay?" They glared at him. "Have you ever known a woman who has been raped?" They froze. "Because I just found an Irish beauty trying to sneak into _my house_ and take her sister from me. Imagine!" Murphy pulled at the handcuffs again. "And if you two try to escape. . ." His grin right then would have been out of place, even on a shark. It was _the_ most evil grin in the history of the universe. At least in Murphy's opinion. "I may not be able to control _several_ of my men. And she is a _beautiful_ woman."

"You fuckin' bastard!" Murphy cried, and began shouting curses at him in Italian. Every single one he knew. Yakavetta walked straight up to him and landed a solid punch to his cheek. Murphy's chair skidded about a foot to the side before sending him sprawling on the floor with a crack. Conner let out in incoherent shout when his brother didn't try to get up. He didn't even move, and Yakavetta seemed perfectly all right with him.

"Come." He said to his men. A sudden image of what had happened the last time they were caught like this. _Rocco_.

He was not about to let that happen to Keeva. And they would do worse to her. He knew Murphy cared deeply for Keeva, maybe even loved her, and if Yakavetta went through with his threat, it would break Murphy, completely. He heard a strangled sound from his brother and jumped his chair closer. Murphy's eyes were open, and his jaw was set firmly.

"Why the fuck did ya do that?" Conner asked. Murphy didn't answer, just lifted his head off the floor, and spit out a mouthful of blood. "Murphy!" His twin's eyes lifted to his own, and he felt himself snap. "Damn it Murph! We're goin' ta get out o' this!"

"All of us?"

* * *

They opened an door and threw her inside. She landed awkwardly, sending pain racing up her arm. She heard loud shouts from the room next door, but ignored it. A red-haired woman was lying stretched out on the bed, facing the wall. From the deep, even breathing, Keeva could tell she was asleep.

"Brigh!" She couldn't get up by herself. "Brigh, wake the fuck up!" Her sister rolled over, her eyes widening like a cartoon's when she saw Keeva.

"Kee!" She flung herself off the mattress and wrapped her arms around Keeva's next. "I knew you'd come!"

"Yeah. Fat lot o' good it did us." She said Brigh shifted her grip, and Keeva cried out as her shoulder cried out in pain. "I can't move me shoulder."

"Oh God!" Brigh sat up and froze, holding her arms up.

"Would ya just fuckin' untie be already?!"

"Shit! Oh, right!" She moved around behind Keeva and moments later Keeva was rolling her shoulder, rubbing it with her other hand, a painful grimace set on her face. She stopped trying to move her shoulder. Keeva bit her lip as she turned and looked at her sister, a deadly serious look in her eyes.

"Brigh."

"What?"

"Are ya hurt?" Brigh shook her head. "They didn't do anythin' ta ya?"

"No. They just shove food and water through that small door twice a day. I've got a bathroom in here with a sink and a fuckin' toilet. I haven't seen anyone. How long have I been here?"

"A fuckin' week."

"A week?!"

"Aye."

"It took ye a fuckin' week ta find me?!"

"No. It took Agent Smecker a fuckin' week ta find ye. He didn't want me anywhere near the search."

"How's John? And my kids?" Keeva shook her head, getting to her feet. The room spun, and she dropped onto the second bed along the wall.

"I don't fuckin know. He didn't want me near them either. I got caught once trying to find you about five days ago."

"What happened?!"

"Not important." Keeva stood again, and this time the world stayed still.

"Keeva-"

"I'll tell ya after we get the fuck out o' here." She moved over to the small flap-like section of the door, and inspected the hinges.

"It doesn't move." Brigh said. "I already tried it." Keeva nodded.

"Well, it's not going ta. Not right now anyway." She sat back on the balls of her feet, using her good arm to hold herself up, and thrust her foot into the door. There was a sharp crack, and they could hear footsteps coming. "Brigh! On the bed! Pretend ta be asleep, but if they try an' wake ye, get up!" Brigh nodded and quickly lay down, feigning sleep. A key rattled in the door, and one of the large men stepped in, clutching a ring of keys.

"Why're ya kickin' the fucking door?" He asked. Keeva glared at him.

"Why the fuck d'ya think ya pig? I'm _tryin'_ ta get out o' here." He seemed confused by her bluntness, and that was just the opportunity she needed. She spun, slamming her heel into his gut. He doubled, and the rammed her foot into the base of his skull. He dropped instantly.

"Brigh! Get his gun!" She grabbed the key ring, which had fallen from his grip as he'd gone unconscious. Her sister pulled the gun from his holster, and they moved out into the corridor, closing the door behind them. It would hold off suspicion for a few extra, precious seconds.

"Murph, pull yerself the fuck together!" She paused in front of the door next to them. "Murph, if they touch her, we'll fuckin' kill 'em, now-"

"Conner?!"

"Keeva! Would ya please tell Murph they didn't fuckin' touch ya!"

"Hang on!" She rifled through the keys, trying each one to see if it would fit. The fifth one did, and she pushed open the door. The handed the keys to Brigh.

"Uncuff him." She said, pointing to Conner as she righted Murphy's chair. He was staring at her like he didn't believe she was real. "Murph!" She grabbed his face with both hands. "Ya need ta keep yer fuckin' head!" He just made a small sound. She turned to look at Conner. "What the fuck happened?"

Conner rubbed his wrists as Brigh freed him. "Yakavetta told us that if we tried ta get out, his men would. . ." He took a deep breath, but Keeva held up a hand. She turned back to Murphy, and grabbed his face again, forcing him to look at her.

"Murph, they didn't touch me. They jus' threw me in a room and fucked up me shoulder." Brigh had uncuffed Conner, and he was now trying to get the gun from her.

"No!"

"Give me the fuckin' gun!"

"No!"

"Stop fuckin' arguing right now!" Keeva ordered. "Brigh, give him the fuckin' gun! He knows how ta use it, and he's not going ta go shootin' us. Now unlock him!" Brigh handed the gun to Conner, then hurried over to Murphy, and uncuffed him. He stood up and immediately pulled Keeva into a tight hug. She swallowed, fighting the urge to just stay there and let him hold her. Even if she _felt_ safe, they weren't.

The gunshot proved it. "Fuck!" Conner said, looking at the guard he'd just shot. Murphy let go of Keeva, and took the dead guard's gun.

"Let's fuckin' go." Keeva looked at him.

"Murph, get Brigh out o' here." She said. He stared at her.

"What? There no way I'm goin' ta fuckin leave ya here!"

"I know what ya said ta John. Now you're goin' ta get her out o' here. I'm going to kill the figlio di puttana." She turned and followed Conner down the hall. Cursing under his breath, Murphy looked to Brigh.

"I promised yer husband I'd get ya back, and Smecker'll kill me if ya wind up dead, so stay close. I don't even want ta think about what Keeva'd do ta me. So come on."

* * *

Keeva chanced a glance behind her and saw Brigh moving in the opposite direction with Murphy. Conner passed a closed door, but it didn't stay that way. As she walked in front of it, a guard stumbled out and froze at the sight of her. She didn't think, just rammed her elbow into his nose. He hit the floor in a faint, and she took the gun from his holster, flicking the safety off.

They reached Yakavetta's office, and Keeva felt energized by the look of pale shock and panic on the Mafia Don's face as they strode into his office, and took out his guards with two shots.

He opened his mouth, but Keeva leveled her gun at him. "Shut yer fuckin' mouth Yakavetta." She said angrily, stepping around his desk. He didn't move as she placed the barrel of her gun to his head.

"You're not a fucking killer." He said. She set her jaw.

"I could become one, right now." She said, and both men in the room believed her. Then she lifted the gun from his head and took a step back. She had a decision to make. Reaching up to her neck, she lightly fingered the cross hanging there.

A peaceful, sudden calm came over her. She knew what she was going to do.

"Oh, grazie!"

Conner put the gun to Yakavetta's head. "On yer fuckin' knees." Yakavetta sunk down, and Conner chanced a glance up at Keeva. She didn't even bat an eye as he began to speak. "And shepherds we shall be. For thee my lord, for thee." She stepped forward, resting the barrel of her gun to his head. Conner paused, and looked at her, his eyes asking if she were sure. She nodded, and he continued. "Power hath descended forth from Thy hand, our feet may swiftly carry out Thy commands. So we shall flow a river forth to Thee, and teeming with souls shall it ever be."

"In Nomeni Patri, Et Fili," Keeva finished, locking eyes with Conner.

"Spiritus Sancti." They said together, and they pulled the triggers.

* * *

"Keeva, where are we?" Brigh asked wearily as Conner and Keeva helped her walk into the apartment.

"Home." Keeva said, shoving open the door to the MacManus's apartment. "Of it feels like it anyway." Da looked up as they came in, getting to his feet, vacating the sofa. Brigh was deposited there, and Da sat down on the end. Murphy collapsed into the armchair, and Conner just lay down on the floor. Keeva went into the kitchen, coming back with several bags filled with ice. She dropped to one knee next to Conner, and put one on his swelling lip. She grabbed his arm and put it over the bag to hold it in place. She tossed two to her sister, who gave her a grateful smile. Keeva disappeared back into the kitchen, and returned with a damp cloth, and walked over to Murphy.

"I don't want a repeat o' the last time." He said. She rolled her eyes.

"There's no fuckin glass in yer face this time." She said, settling herself down in his lap. She tried to wipe the blood off his face, but he kept moving. She glared at him. "Murph. . ." He stopped, glaring at her as she gently wiped the blood away from the cut on his split lip, which was starting to bruise famously, along with most of his cheek.

"Ow!"

"What the fuck happened ta ye?" She demanded as he winced again.

"He fuckin' cursed Yakavetta out in Italian after he told us what would'a happened." Conner muttered from the floor, his voice slightly muffled from the ice pack. Keeva fixed Murphy with a glare, and smacked him on the uninjured side of his head.

"What the fuck was that fer?" Murphy asked, rubbing his head.

"Fer being a fuckin' idiot." She said. He rolled his eyes.

"Keeva, I know it's late and all, but what the hell's goin' on?" Keeva looked up at her sister, and bit her lip. "Kee, please."

"Maybe I can do that?" They all looked up at Smecker, who was standing in the doorway. Brigh sat up straight, her eyes wide.

"Agent Smecker!" He smiled at her, pulling a hand through his hair. "Maybe I'll get some damn answers from _you_." He nodded, leaning against the door frame.

"As soon as I learned you were missing, I knew that Keeva here would go after you." Keeva made a face at him, shifting so she was leaning back against Murphy's chest. "And I was fucking right. These three found her in the warehouse where they _had_ been holding you."

"Yakavetta's right hand _was_ there though." Keeva said. Brigh frowned.

"But I heard the guards saying that the Saints. . ." She trailed off, her eyes widened. "Shit! You guys are the Saints! Keeva, what the-"

"Brigh, calm down."

"Look, I know you agree with what they do, but-"

"And I know you don't!"

"We _are_ sitting right here ya know." Murphy said from behind Keeva. She smacked him lightly on the shoulder.

"Brigh, they're not bad people!"

"But-"

"Look, you trust me, right?" Brigh stopped fidgeting and locked eyes with her sister.

"You know I do."

"Then trust me when I tell you that they're all right. You're safe here." Brigh relaxed against the sofa.

"Okay. So what happened after that?"

"I made her stay here, with the boys." Smecker went on. "Until I could find you. Then I let her go in, and here we are."

"When can I go home?" She asked. Smecker gave her a smile.

"You come down to the police station tomorrow and tell us you were rescued by the Saints. They'll be almost no questions, and you'll be able to go home." Brigh nodded, and heaved a heavy yawn, which she tried to hide.

"It's been a long day." Da said. "And tomorrow may be even longer. We should all get ta bed." Brigh glanced around at everyone. "Me back's brotherin' me again, so ya can have me bed lass." Brigh hesitated, then nodded. Keeva got up off of Murphy and went to help her sister up.

"Come on. I'll show you." She said, and lead her sister out of the room. No one had said so, but they all knew that she'd be staying with Murphy that night.

* * *

"Keeva?" Brigh asked as she sat down on the bed. Keeva turned back to her sister, and smacked herself in the head.

"I'm fuckin smart." She said. "I'll be right back with some pajamas." She came back and handed the clothes to her sister, who gave her a tight hug. "They're just fuckin' pajamas Brigh."

"Keeva, shut it." She said. With a smile, Keeva hugged her sister back. After a few minutes, she pulled away from her sister.

"Get some fuckin' sleep." She said, her voice and accent thicker than usual. "Yer goin' ta need it." By the time she got back to the main room, Conner had gone off to bed, and Smecker had gone. Murphy was in the kitchen, a mostly empty beer in his hand. He looked up as she came in, his eyes narrowing. He stood up and let her walk over to him, wrapping his arms around her slim form. She choked back a sob and grabbed his shirt.

"What the fuck da ya have ta cry about?" He asked, rubbing her back gently. "It's over. Yer sister's here, and she's safe."

"That's just it." She said. "It's fuckin over." He suddenly got it. She's been so strong through the entire ordeal and now that it was over, she didn't have to be anymore. His grip on her tightened instinctively, and one of his hands trailed up to cup the back of her head, pressing her head tighter into his shoulder as his fingers tangled in her hair.

"Ya don't have to be so fuckin' strong all tha time." He said. Keeva's arms slid around his waist, pulling herself harder against him. She titled her head so she was looking at the tattoo on his neck. She shifted her head over and planted a soft kiss on it. She felt him stiffen, and inhale sharply, his grip on her tightening. She placed another kiss on his jaw line, and he snapped his head around, pressing his lips to hers. After a moment, his tongue flitted against her lips and she parted them, allowing him entrance as her hands made their way up to his neck, pulling his mouth into hers even harder.

A noise from the doorway made them pull away from each other. Murphy's brows rose slightly, and Keeva turned to find her shocked-looking sister standing in the doorway, her mouth hanging open.

"Uh, I'm sorry." She said. "But I _have_ to play older sister here." Keeva groaned and let her head fall onto Murphy's chest. He grinned.

"Completely understandable." He said. "Same with me brother an' me."

"Keeva, can we have a moment?" Keeva glanced from her sister to Murphy, then back to her sister.

"No killing him." She said firmly, and left the kitchen. Murphy picked up his beer again, and leaned against the counter. Brigh opted to lean against the table, her arms folded over her chest.

After a long moment of silence, Murphy sighed. "So, are ya goin' ta kill me?" He raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?"

"Fer bein' with Keeva."

"So are ye two datin' or what?" Murphy levered himself up so he was sitting on the counter and sighed, shaking his head.

"Honestly? I've got no fuckin' clue. We haven't really talked abou' it."

"What about you?" He raised his eyebrows at her. "How do ya feel about her?" Murphy sighed, shaking his head.

"Fuck." He rubbed his eyes with his palms. "I think I fuckin' love 'er." He didn't look up at Brigh. "I mean, I've barely known her a fuckin' week, but-" He looked up at her and stopped. She was grinning. "What?"

"You've got it bad." She said. He raised his eyebrows even further. "Keeva. Everyone she meets likes her immediately. My kids, they love her."

"I know." Murphy said quietly. "I met 'em. Smecker made me go with her when she got some of her clothes. He figured everyone would be safer if she wasn't with them." Brigh nodded.

"Sounds like Smecker." She shook her head, and looked up at him. "He really helped Keeva and I out, a long time ago."

Murphy nodded. "Aye, he told us abou' that." Brigh shook her head, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Did ya know that Smecker is the only one Keeva has ever told what she did to Papa Joe?" Murphy looked up at her sharply.

"Wait, what happened?" Brigh's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"When she got me out from under the Yakavetta's thumb, a guard tried to stop us from leaving his office. She knocked him out, took his gun, and made me wait outside. She never told me what she said to him, but he didn't bother us again." Murphy stared at her, blinking a couple of times. "She really didn't say anything?"

"No, she really didn't." Keeva said from the doorway. "Now my sister can really shut her mouth and get some fuckin' sleep." Brigh made a face at her.

"I've got twelve years on ye." Keeva rolled her eyes.

"Aye, but I've got a fuckin' black belt. Ye want ta try explainin' ta Catrina why I had ta knock ye out?" Brigh stuck out her tongue, but left, slipping quietly through the main room, so as not to wake Da. Keeva didn't move from her spot in the doorway, she just leaned to the side against it.

"Ya never did tell us how ya were mixed up with the fuckin' Italians." He said. Keeva shifted slightly, looking at the floor.

"I know." She said quietly. She didn't hear him move, but when she looked up again he was standing about a foot in front of her.

"So, ye want ta tell me what happened?" She bit her lip, shaking her head.

"Murph, it's been years and I haven't even told me fuckin' sister. Now yer expecting fer me ta tell ya?" He set his jaw, fixing her with a blue-eyed stare. She faltered, then stepped past him and collapsed into one of the chairs, drawing her knees up to her chest.

* * *

"Brigh, go wait in the car." Keeva said firmly. Her sister stared at her.

"What? No way! I'm not leavin' ya in here!"

"I said go wait in the car!"

"So Miss Dolan." Papa Joe said, standing so the two guns in his holsters were completely revealed. "What do you think you can do to me, eh?"

Keeva strode up to his desk, stepping over so she was standing right next to his chair, and gave him her most disarming smile. "What makes ya think I'm going ta do anythin' ta ye?" She asked. He sat back in his chair, folding his arms behind his head. She leaned down and put a hand on his shoulder. In one swift movement she'd flipped open his holster, pull out the gun and pressed it under his chin.

"I thought you fucking said you weren't going to do anything!" Papa Joe exclaimed.

"No. What I **asked** was why the fuck ye thought I **was** goin' ta do somethin'." She said. "And **now** I want ya ta give me a fuckin' reason not ta pull this trigger right now. Because I'm goin' ta bet that the cops would take one look at this crime scene, and label it a suicide without a second fuckin' thought."

"Okay! Okay! Don't fucking shoot me!" Keeva smiled at him, flicking the safety off. She pressed it harder against the flesh at the bottom of his chin.

"And why tha fuck not?"

"What the fuck do you want?"

"Leave me and me sister the fuck alone." She said."I even so much as glimpse one of yer men, or smell your foul fuckin' stench and not even God himself will be able ta protect ya." She tapped the small cross on his neck with her finger, then grabbed it, yanking it off his neck. She lifted the gun from him, flicking the safety on and shoving it into the back of her jeans.

She heard him stand behind her, and she whipped it out again, thumbing the safety off as she aimed and fired.The gun flew from his hand, knocked out of the way by the bullet from her gun.

"An' don't worry. I can use one o' these fuckin' things."


	11. Chapter 11

"_Brigh, go wait in the car." Keeva said firmly. Her sister stared at her. _

"_What? No way! I'm not leavin' ye in here!"_

"_I said go wait in the car!" Brigh gave her younger sister a glare, then met her eyes. Her own widened and she took an involuntary step backward. She had never seen her sister this mad before. She decided it would be a better idea to wait in the car. She'd rather not know what her sister was about to do. _

"_So Miss Dolan." Papa Joe said, shifting so the two guns in his holsters were completely revealed. "What do you think you can do to me, eh?" _

_Keeva strode up to his desk, stepping over so she was standing right next to his chair, and gave him her most disarming smile. "What makes ya think I'm going ta do anythin' to ye?" She asked. He sat back in his chair, folding his arms behind his head. She leaned down and put a hand on his shoulder. In one swift movement she'd flipped open his holsters, pull out the gun and pressed it under his chin. _

"_I thought you fucking said you weren't going to do anything!" Papa Joe exclaimed. _

"_No. What I **asked** was why the fuck ye thought I **was** goin' ta do somethin'." She said. "And **now** I want ya ta give me a good fuckin' reason not ta pull this trigger right now. Because I'm goin' ta bet that the cops would take one look at this crime scene, and label it a suicide without a second fuckin' thought." _

"_Okay! Okay! Don't fucking shoot me!" Keeva smiled at him, flicking the safety off. She pressed it harder against the flesh at the bottom of his chin. _

"_And why tha fuck not?" _

"_What the fuck do you want?" _

"_Leave me and me sister alone." She said. "I even so much as glimpse one of yer men, or smell your foul fuckin' stench and not even God himself will be able ta protect ye." She tapped the small cross on his neck with her finger, then grabbed it, yanking it off his neck. She lifted the gun from him, flicking the safety on and shoving it into the back of her jeans. _

_She heard him stand behind her, and she whipped it out again, thumbing the safety off as she aimed and fired. The gun flew from his hand, knocked out of the way by the bullet from her own gun. _

"_An' don't worry. I can use one o' these fuckin' things."

* * *

_

She nervously wet her lips and looked up at Murphy, and saw he was loooking a little confused. Shaking her head, she stood and started to move toward the door. Before she made it there, he grabbed her arm and turned her to face him, a smirk on his face.

"You actually put a fuckin' gun to Papa Joe's head?" He asked. She nodded, and his smirk widened.

"Aye. . ." He leaned back against the table, sliding his arms around her waist and pulling her closer to him.

He mumbled something unintelligible into her hair.

"What?" She grinned, sliding her arms around his neck. He kissed her neck, pulling her closer.

"You, with a gun." He accented every word with a kiss to her neck. "Is fuckin-" He didn't get to finish his sentence because she pressed her lips to his in a passionate kiss. The next thing Murphy knew, he had her pressed against the wall, his hands under her shirt and working their way up her back. She broke away, turning her head to the side.

"We're goin' ta wake someone up." She whispered. Murphy stopped, and let his head fall against the wall. "Murph?" She asked after a moment.

"I know." He mumbled into her shoulder. "I need another fuckin' drink."

"An' a cold shower?" She asked, smiling.

"Fuckin' freezin'." He pushed himself up and turned away from her, ruffling his hair and he grabbed another beer.

"I'm goin ta go ta bed." She said. He nodded, his face darkening slightly. "You coming?"

"In a bit." She sighed, and slipped into the back bedroom where Conner was already in bed, his eyes closed. He wasn't asleep though.

"Where's Murph?" He asked softly as she pulled on her pajama top. She turned to find him with his arm thrown over his face.

"Kitchen." Conner sat up.

"Ye decent?" He asked. She sighed.

"Aye." He removed his arm from his face and eyed her carefully.

"So, Murph. Was he drinkin'?" She nodded.

"Fuck." He slid his socks on and slipped out of the room.

Conner knew all to well what was getting to Murphy. Yakavetta's words echoed in Conner's head still, and he wasn't the twin in love with Keeva. _Have you ever known a woman who has been raped?_ He'd seen the look of pure rage on his brother's face, and that had effected Conner more than the words themselves. He knew it was a possibility, but he knew that Keeva could pretty well take care of herself. Murphy knew it too, and that was probably the main reason he didn't make a big fight out of her coming with them.

But the pain in his brother's eyes, the rage, the pure hatred for the man had been like an icy fist punching him in the stomach.

He found Murphy in the kitchen already on his fourth beer. He snatched the can out of his hands, tossing it into the sink. Murphy titled his head back and glared at his brother.

"What the fuck was that fer?"

"Fer bein' a fuckin' idiot!" Conner hissed. Murphy raised his eyebrows at his brother.

"Why am I a fuckin' idiot?"

"Because yer sitting in here instead of goin' ta bed, beating yerself up abou' lettin' her come with us!" Murphy stood up.

"They wouldn't o' hesitated ta rape her!" He exclaimed in a whisper. "An'-"

"An' they didn't fuckin' touch 'er Murph! Fuck, I know ye love her, but ya got ta let this go. She's fuckin' fine, and she could'a killed any man she didn't want touchin' her with her bare hands." He grabbed his brother's arm and hauled him to his feet. "Now go ta fuckin' bed Murph!"

* * *

The next evening, Keeva walked into the police station with Murphy and Conner to find Brigh in Smecker's office.

"Well, time fer tha show." She said. The boys smirked at her. All they had ta do was sit back, watch and pretend they'd never met Brigh before.

"Brigh!" She cried, dashing into Smecker's office. The Chief of police stood swiftly as she ran in, throwing her arms around her sister's neck. "Oh my god! You scared the shit out of all of us!" She turned to Smecker, and gave him a hug. The Chief smirked as the FBI agent firmly pushed her off.

"Miss Dolan, I think your sister would like to see her children." Keeva gathered up her sisters things and they hurried out of the building. As soon as they hit the street, Keeva dissolved into giggles, grabbing Murphy's arm.

"So, how was that?"

"Maybe we should move ta Hollywood." Conner said with a grin. Murphy just gave her a chaste kiss on the lips as they hailed a cab.

* * *

Brigh had told them she wanted to surprise John, but as they came nearer to the house, she tried to turn around. Murphy and Conner caught her arms, and forced her to walk up the front steps as Keeva pulled her key from her purse.

"Let just hope John's not feelin' to fuckin jumpy tonight." She said, twisting the key in the lock. She opened the door and stepped into the silent house. She frowned.

A few lights were on, and it was warm, beating back the chill of the night as Conner shut the door behind them all. A thump from the dining room made her swivel. Brigh let out a little squeak, and both brothers clamped a hand over her mouth. She gripped onto their arms, and Keeva gave them a nod, pulling the gun from Murphy's holster and walking silently into the room. Another small noise came from the other side of the bookshelf. She padded over to the edge, leveling the gun steadily in her grip.

Braden screamed when he saw the gun, and Keeva quickly raised it to point at the ceiling. "Braden, you piece of-" She cut herself off. "Conner, turn the fuckin' lights on! The switch is ta yer left." Light Flooded the room, and she could now clearly see Braden's pale face, staring at her. After a moment the fifteen-year-old boy lunged at her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"You're back! Thank God!" He froze when he looked over her shoulder. The twins removed their hands from Brigh's mouth, but when they tried to let her go, she almost fell. Murphy helped her over to the sofa in the next room. Braden threw himself down next to her and hugged her tightly. "Mom!" He buried his face in her shoulder. Keeva leaned against the wall just inside the door, as Murphy came to stand next to her.

"Well, I think ye gave him quite a scare." He said. Keeva shoved the gun back in his holster.

"Aye, but he didn't exactly do me any good either." Conner was standing in front of the door when it opened, and John walked in, Catrina right behind him. The girl let out an earsplitting scream, and turned running. John made to hit Conner, but Keeva caught his arm.

"Calm the fuck down John!" She said, and took off after the little girl. She caught up with her in the yard.

"Catrina!" The girl turned and let out a scream, this time of joy as she ran back toward her Aunt. Keeva caught her up in her arm, and carried her back into the house. She headed straight for the sofa where John sat, holding his wife. She put Catrina down and the girl dashed over into her mother's arms.

After a long moment, Murphy came over, slipping his arm around her waist. Conner came over, taking his place on her other side, slightly behind her.

John got up and came over to the three of them. He reached out and pulled Keeva into a tight embrace. He let her go, trembling slightly. His voice was shaking as he spoke.

"Keeva-"

She put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have ta John." She said. "Really, ya don't." John nodded, and looked up at the twins.

"Right. But I do have to thank you two." They shook their heads.

"No ye don't." Conner assured him. "We were just helpin'."

John nodded, and looked down at Keeva. "You're going, aren't you?" Keeva put her hand on his shoulder.

"You guys need some time." She said. "_She_ needs some time." She nodded towards Brigh.

"Keeva-" She gave his shoulder a firm squeeze.

"John, go on. You guys need this time."

"But-"

"Please." She turned to Conner and Murphy, who looked surprised. As she closed the door behind them, they turned to her.

"Keeva, they need ya." Murph said. She shook her head, shoving her hands in her pockets.

"That's just it." She replied as they set off down the street. "Catrina, Braden, Brigh, they all rely on me too much." She sighed heavily. "I'm twenty-four fuckin years old." She said. "And the only thing I've known is takin' care of my sister's kids."

"What're ya talkin' about?" Conner asked. She bit her lip.

"It's something Murph said Braden told him. That I was more of a mother than she was?" She shook her head, chewing on her lip. "That's not what I wanted, what Brigh wanted."

"Well then, what did yer sister want?"

"She wanted me ta have a family of me fuckin' own." She said, a smile pulling at the corners of her lips. Conner an Murphy moved over, sliding their arms around her shoulders..

"An' I think ye found one." Conner said quietly. He glanced over at his brother and gave him a smile.


	12. Chapter 12

"Keeva, please explain that to me again. Because I really don't think you said what I think you said." Brigh rubbed her temples.

"Well, what'd ya think I said?"

"I think you said you're moving out."

"Aye."

Brigh jumped to her feet, using her two inches of height on Keeva to tower over her angrily. "Keeva, you promised me you'd help take care of my kids! Catrina doesn't start school until next year! And I've got to work!"

"I didn't say I wouldn't still be around!" Keeva protested.

"Keeva, you haven't been around for two frickin weeks!"

"You didn't need me! You were still off work!"

"Keeva-"

"Brigh-"

Both sisters let out an angry yell and turned away from each other.

"This is about Murphy, isn't it?"

"Not entirely!"

"Then what is it?"

"I'm twenty-four! Brigh, you had Braden when you were twenty-one! When we talked about me coming to help you, you said you wanted me to have a fuckin' life! A family o' my own! Now that I'm trying to do just that, yer tellin' me I fuckin' can't?"

"Keeva, I _need_ you! _We_ need you!"

"Brigh, tell me _once_ in yer entire fuckin' life. When have ye taken responsibility fer _anything_?!"

"Try eighteen fuckin' years ago! When Ma and Da died?" Brigh shouted. "I took ye in!"

"Fer five months! Then ye shipped me right back off!"

"I couldn't take care o' ye!" Brigh shouted. "I was twenty fuckin' years old!"

"You were twenty-one an' takin' care o' yer own kid!"

"No I wasn't!" Brigh shouted, and startled Keeva into silence. "John had to! I was completely clueless! I still am!"

"Then get yerself a fuckin' clue!" Keeva shouted back. "Because I deserve ta have a life!"

"And what kind of a life do ye think Murphy can give ye?! Running around, away from the cops?! I thought ye wanted kids o' yer own!" Keeva was suddenly glad the Braden and Catrina had gone down to the park down the street with Murphy. They couldn't hear the shouting match. Or, they possibly could, the park wasn't _that_ far away.

"Brigh, you've got no fuckin' idea what yer talkin' about!"

"They're killers Keeva! Murders!"

"They're good people, an' they only kill evil men!"

"Keeva, would you listen to yerself? You're not a killer! You're not like them!"

"Yes I am!" Brigh froze, staring at her sister with wide eyes. She knew what Keeva meant by that.

"Yakavetta." She said quietly, then cried, "You didn't!" Keeva set her jaw.

"Aye."

"No!"

"I already told ye I did!"

* * *

"Murphy, watch out!" Murphy swung around, and tried to duck the little girl who was attempting to jump on him. When he'd agreed to go with Keeva to talk to her sister, he hadn't thought he'd be taking her niece and nephew to the park down the street. And he didn't imagine trying to play soccer with them either.

Catrina didn't seem to understand that it wasn't _supposed_ to be a contact sport. She kept trying to tackle the boys, even though her brother was on her team. Now, even though he didn't have the ball, she was chasing him.

"No! Yer brother! He's got tha ball!" Braden just laughed, until Catrina tripped and fell the stream that fed a large pond in the middle of the park. She started crying, trying to get the mud out of her eyes.

"Cat!" Braden abandoned the ball, and reached her at the same time Murphy did. The older man lifted her up out of the cold water and set her down on the ground, using the bottom of his shirt to wipe her face off. She opened her eyes and stared up at him, green eyes wide as she slowly got to her feet, a muddy hand in her mouth. Braden took a step back as Murphy stood. Catrina suddenly leapt at Murphy, tackling his legs. Loosing his balance because he didn't want to kick the girl, he tumbled backward, straight into the pond.

* * *

"Keeva, are you insane? You actually put a gun to a man's head and pulled tha fuckin trigger?!"

"Yes!"

"You _are_ insane!"

"Brigh, that man kidnapped you, threatened me and our family!"

"_Our_ family? I thought it was _my_ family! At least, that's what you said not five minutes ago!"

The door opened, and Braden walked in, pausing in the doorway when he saw the two of them. Behind him Keeva could see Murphy carrying a muddy-looking Catrina, and he was dripping wet and completely covered in mud.

"Don't ask." He said, and his eyes flickered from one to the other. "We'll uh. . . Be in the kitchen." He said, and gave the back of Braden's leg a gentle kick. The three of them hurried off into the kitchen, where Braden got his sister an ice pop.

A flurry of hushed shouts came from the dining room, and then Brigh's voice.

"What kind of fuckin life would you have?"

"You already asked that question!"

"What is it with you and dangerous men?" Catrina whimpered and buried her face in Murphy's shirt. Murphy looked up at her brother, who shrugged and shook his head.

"Don't look at me. They've _never_ fought like this." He said quietly. Murphy tried to put Catrina down, but she was clinging to his shirt, and wouldn't let go.

"The last guy you went out with got busted for drug dealing!"

"I broke up with him as soon as I fuckin' found out!"

"And that biker?"

"Brigh!"

"What?!"

"Stop it!"

"No! I'm tryin' ta watch out for ye! Like I've always done!"

Braden tried to get his sister off of Murphy, but she held on tightly. Murphy sighed, and shifted her in his arms so he could rest a hand on Braden's shoulder.

"It's all righ'." He said. "She'd just get ya muddy anyway." Braden nodded. Catrina suddenly let go of his shirt with one hand, and reached up, pulling his rosary out from under his shirt.

"Hey!" He said as she hit him in the chin with it. "Be careful, all right?" She nodded, running her muddy fingers over the polished wood.

Keeva marched into the living room. "Murphy, we're goin'." He shifted Catrina in his arms and tried to hand her over to Braden, but she let out a yell and grabbed his shirt with both hands.

"Catrina! Stop that, right now!" Brigh demanded as she came in behind Keeva. This only served to make Catrina scream louder.

"No! I want Uncle Murphy!" Keeva blanched, and got a hold of her niece.

"Kitty Cat." She said soothingly. "Let go of Murphy, all righ'?" The little girl was still shouting, but she let go of his shirt. Before she could latch onto her, Keeva handed her quickly to Brigh and grabbed Murphy's hand, lacing her fingers through his as they left.

"Uncle Murphy?" He asked. He noticed that Keeva still looked a little pale. She shook her head, and he let go of her hand, sliding his arm around her waist. "Ye all right?" He asked. She nodded.

"It's just the whole thing with Brigh." She said quietly. Murphy stopped walking and narrowed his eyes at her.

"That's not fuckin' it, is it?" She chewed on her lip, refusing to meet his eyes. "Kee, we're not goin' anywhere till ya answer me, and I'm soakin' wet, so hurry up and answer the fuckin' question!"

"What was it again?"

"Why did you get nervous when Catrina called me Uncle Murphy?" She chewed on her lip, shivering in the cold wind. He wasn't doing much better, but at least he had a coat on. Whereas she only had a thin sweater.

"How about if I swear I'll answer you when we get home?" He considered it for a second, then nodded.


	13. Chapter 13

It wasn't until after they'd gotten home and he'd had a hot shower that she actually did answer him. Conner wasn't in the apartment, so they were free to make out on the sofa as much as they liked. It wasn't that Conner had a problem with them being together, he just said he didn't need to see it all the time.

"So why'd you get nervous when she called me Uncle Murphy?" He asked, leaning back against the arm of the sofa. She shrugged, shifting so she was lying completely on top of him, her chin resting on his chest. "Come on. You swore you'd tell me." She sighed, and her forehead replaced her chin. When she replied, her voice was muffled.

"About two years ago, I had this boyfriend. Jesse." Murphy nodded, and she continued. "We were doing well, but then one day, Catrina called him Uncle Jesse." She sighed, pushing herself up with her arms so she was looking at him. "Two days later he broke up with me and split." There was a sadness in her eyes that told him exactly what he didn't want to know. This guy had hurt her deeply.

Murphy leaned forward and captured her lips with his. She responded, slithering up his body so he didn't have to twist his neck. After a moment, Murphy pressed his hand into her shoulders, and rested his forehead against hers.

"I could hunt him down and kick tha shit out o' him, if ya wanted." She rolled her eyes.

"Shut up MacManus." His hand curled around the back of her head, pulling her back down to him. He suddenly flipped them so she was lying underneath him, and deepened the kiss. Her hands slid down, slipping under his shirt. He trembled slightly as her hands worked their way up his stomach and to his chest muscles. As her fingers danced lightly over his skin, one of his hands made its way down, gripping her hip. He ran his thumb roughly over her hip bone and she moaned softly into his mouth. After a long moment, he pulled back, and opened his eyes, just looking down at her. She sighed lightly, and gazed up at him.

"What?" She asked softly. He shook his head, smiling lightly.

"Nothin'." He said with a shrug. "I jus' like lookin at ya." She felt the blush creeping up her neck, and her face burning. Damn, she was unused to blushing, and Murphy seemed to be the only one who could make her do it at will. She sighed, letting her head fall to the side so she was staring off into the room. He lowered himself slowly back down and placed a gentle kiss on the side of her neck. She shivered underneath him, and suddenly pushed him off. He leaned back against the back of the couch with a sigh.

"What?" He asked. Keeva sat up, and turned to look at him.

"Where do ye see this goin' Murph?" He groaned, and lay down behind her.

"I've got no fuckin clue." He said. She pulled a hand through her hair with a heavy sigh. "Why?"

"I just got into the biggest fight I've ever had with my sister because of this. . . _Thing_ we have, and I don't even know what it is!"

"Keeva. . ."

"Don't do that Murph!" She said, standing up. "Brigh's partially right here, as much as I hate ta admit it."

"What's she right about?" He asked, sitting up. "Yer not rethinkin leavin, are ye?"

Her voice was quiet. "That's not it."

"Then what?" She didn't raise her head from the floor, but her eyes lifted to his face, then back down again. "Fuck no!" He shot to his feet, and grabbed her arms. "Keeva-" He was at a complete loss for words. "Ye, ye can't leave!" She swallowed, unconsciously wetting her lips.

"Murph-"

"No!"

"Murph!" He looked up at him. "What kind of life do you think I want?" He froze, staring at her in a sort of horrified shock. His grip on her arms loosened.

"I-" He let go of her, and she took half a step back.

"Murph, I want _kids_! And moving around every few months to escape the cops is not the kind of life a child should have!"

"Then we won't!" He finally found his voice. Her eyes widened. "We won't move! We'll stop bein the fuckin Saints!"

"I don't want you to!"

"Then what the fuck _do_ ye want?!" Murphy shouted.

"You! I love ye, but-" She put her face in her hands. She felt like she had a foot on either side of a canyon and it was widening underneath her. "God, Murph." She felt him slide his arms around her shoulders, pulling him into her. She was silent for a long moment before she heard the door open and someone take several hesitant steps into the room.

"Is it safe ta come in yet?" Conner asked. "I could hear ye from the fuckin' stairs."

Keeva nodded, but didn't make any move to pull away from Murphy. "Aye. It's safe." Murphy replied, and let go of Keeva. He ran a hand through his hair, and met Conner's questioning gaze. Conner nodded and the two of them disappeared into the kitchen. Keeva sat down on the sofa.

Brigh was right.

* * *

Conner eyed his brother. He knew _something_ was wrong. He had been shouting at Keeva the minute before, and now he was pacing around the kitchen.

He leaned back against the counter and folded his arms over his chest. "What the fuck's wrong Murph?" He asked. Murphy glanced up at him, shook his head, and continued pacing. Conner groaned. Getting his brother to talk about _any_thing could sometimes be like trying to pull the teeth out of his head. He sighed, and had just resigned himself to waiting when Murphy finally burst.

"She's going ta fuckin leave me Conn." He said. Conner stared at him. "Cause o' her fuckin sister!"

"Murph-"

"No, not because of her sister. Because o' somethin she said!"

"And what'd Brigh say ta her?"

"That I can't make a life fer her!" It suddenly dawned on Conner why he was talking about it.

"Murph, ye can."

"But she doesn't want us ta stop bein tha Saints! We can't _ever_ stop!"

"Murph-"

"We fuckin promised Rocco!" Murphy exclaimed. "We can't ever fuckin stop!"

"Murph, you think Rocco would have wanted this for us?" Murph frowned. "Runnin around all tha time, no life, no family? At least then we had him. Now it's just you, me, and Da." He paused. "An' now Keeva."

"We're not draggin her inta this Conn." Conner's eyes narrowed, and Murphy raised his eyebrows.

"We don' have ta." Murphy's eyes narrowed again. "She's already in it."

"What?" Conner set his jaw, folding his arms over his chest. "Conn, what are you-" He stopped. "Yakavetta." Conner didn't reply, just looked down at the floor. Murphy suddenly grabbed the front of his shirt, angrily shoving him back into the refrigerator.

"Murph-!"

"What the _fuck_'d ye let her do that fer?"

"She needed to Murph! It was her decision ta make, not mine!"

"She's goin ta end up just like Rocco if she does it again!"

"And that's her decision ta make Murph, not yours!" Murphy set his jaw angrily, and for a moment, Conner thought he might hit him. But then he let go of his shirt and took half a step back before turning around and pacing again. Conner found himself in a tough place. Keeva had become like a little sister to him over the past week or so, and he wanted to defend her, but by doing that he was obviously hurting his twin.

God, he was so confused. Unconsciously, his fingers found the cross of his rosary under his shirt and he gripped it through the thin material, closing his eyes. He heard his brother still pacing as he said a silent, quick prayer and opened his eyes again. He suddenly knew what they had to do.

"Murph." His brother looked over at him, slightly confused by the confidence and conviction in his brother's voice. "Come on." He lifted his coat up off the table, and grabbed Murphy's arm.

"Where the fuck're we goin?" He asked. Conner didn't answer as he dragged him through the living room. Keeva glanced up at them, meeting Conner's eyes. She reached up and touched a small silver cross hanging from her neck, raising her eyebrows in question. Conner nodded and she returned it. Shoving his brother's jacket into his arms, he pulled him out the door.

When they reached the street, Conner finally let go of his brother's arm and pulled on his jacket, trying to ward off some of the early evening chill. He glanced up at the sky as the two of them walked down the alley and into the street. It always seemed to be dark in Boston. Even when the sun was out, it was like a veil had been pulled over the city. Like God knew about all the evil men, and was shaping the world to reflect it.

He was worried to say the least. They'd had conversations about stopping before, but never this serious. They wanted to keep their promise to Rocco. Their best friend, the man they trusted with their lives. And he'd trusted them.

And they'd failed him.

Murphy had taken it the hardest, mainly because it had been his idea to bring him on board in the first place. He'd had a harder time getting over it too. They'd both struggled, but Conner had felt like every time his head broke the surface, Murphy pulled him back under as he tried to keep himself from drowning.

They'd made it through, and kept their word. They'd hunted down evil men, spilling their blood in memory of their friend.

But personal vengeance had taken its toll on both of them. It didn't effect Da as much. He'd been doing it for a long time. And though their father was used to it, the twins weren't.

He had been the one to see the look on her face right after she'd pulled her trigger. The fire of certainty in her eyes fading away as Bengino Yakavetta's body hit the floor. He'd been the one to grab her as she almost fainted, and carry her most of the way out of the building.

She'd asked him not to tell Murphy, but she'd understood when he told her they didn't keep secrets from each other.

He turned to make sure Murphy was following him, and gave his brother a reassuring look when their eyes met. Without a word, he lead him into the church. Murphy's eyed lowered guiltily.

They hadn't been to Mass for two weeks, and the last time he'd been in there, it had been when he'd found Keeva lighting the candles. Slipping his rosary out from under his shirt, he stepped inside. It was too late for confession, the Father was already gone, but that's not what Murphy needed. He needed to pray. And Conner had known that. Whenever they were uncertain about _anything_ the other would know, and the two of them would head down to the church, sometimes staying for hours, before their Ma would come down and drag them home. Church had always been a place where they could come for answers and guidance.

They took their usual spot in the back of the church and bowed their heads.

Out of the two of them, they both knew that Murphy prayed the hardest, his belief the firmest. When they were children he was always up on Sunday mornings, ready to go to Mass before anyone else. And he was always the last one to leave.

* * *

Keeva was restless. The boys had gone to church, something she should do. But that could wait for another time. She wandered through the empty apartment, nervously biting her fingernails. She looked down at them for a moment, and shoved her hands into her pockets. She opened the fridge to find something to eat, but there wasn't really much there. There was a block of American cheese, a half a gallon of milk and a whole lot of beer. Sighing, she shook her head and opened the cabinets. A box of elbow macaroni and more beer. Smirking now, she pulled out the macaroni and found a dented pot in one of the other cabinets. With another sigh, she pounded the dent out as best she could, then filled it with water, cooking the macaroni. When that was done, she melted the cheese in the pot, and mixed in some milk to thin out the mixture. Then, she poured in the cooked macaroni and stirred it in. Tasting it, she frowned, and looked in the fridge again. Nothing. Heaving a heavy sigh, she pulled the pot off the burner and scribbled out a note for the twins before grabbing her jacket and keys, locking the door behind her.

* * *

Conner an Murphy got back to find the apartment empty. Murphy started to panic, then he saw a note taped to two bottles of beer sitting out of the kitchen table. He snatched up the note.

_Could you guys have any _less_ food? Or _more_ beer:)_

_Gone shopping, back soon. _

_-Keeva_

Murphy took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, the note crinkling as his hands balled into fists. Conner eyed his brother waiting to duck if he decided to take a swing at something near him. Like his brother.

"Murph. . ." He saw his brother's shoulder relax a little as he sighed.

"I'm fine Conn." He said quietly. He still had his back to his brother.

"Really?"

"Aye. I can't keep her with me every fuckin second."

"Well, I'm glad ye can finally admit that." They both swung around to see Keeva walking through the door, plastic bags weighing down her hands. They both stared at her. "What? Oh come on, you just admitted you can't keep me with ye every second. Now could ye move? My hands are goin ta fall off." They moved and she dumped the bags down on the table, then moved over and put the pot back on the stove. She turned to find the twins still staring at her.

"What?" She asked. Murphy swallowed, and glanced over at Conner, who gave them a nod, and left the room. Keeva bit her lip nervously, and pulled a container of garlic power out of one of the bags, and sprinkled it in the pot. Murphy was silent for a long moment. She could feel his eyes on her back as he watched her, silently. Still silent, she moved over to get milk from the fridge, but Murphy's arms wrapped around her, pulling her into him. She was about to pull away, but then she noticed the way he was holding her. Like she was a lifeline, but one made of porcelain. She swallowed, leaned back to look at him.

"Murph?" She asked softly, sliding her hand up to his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. His eyes shifted to meet hers, and her breath caught in her throat.

"Why didn't ye tell me?" He asked quietly? She bit her lip. "Kee. . ."

"I knew you'd take it badly." She said quietly. "I-" She chewed on her lip.

"Were ye goin ta tell me?" He asked. She looked up at him sharply.

"Yer seriously askin me that? I was goin ta tell ye, but it got pushed aside." She looked down at his chest, then suddenly pulled away. "Dinner's goin ta burn." She grabbed the wooden spoon she'd been using, and stirred the macaroni. There was a slightly uncomfortable silence, then Murphy sighed, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"Ye need help?" He asked, sounding a little awkward. Keeva turned and gave him a small smile.

"Milk?" He pulled it out of the fridge and opened it. "Just a little on tha top." He reached around her, and dumped some on top. She started to stir it in, but he pushed her out of the way with his hip, smirking as she glared at him.

"What? I can fuckin cook." He said.

"No ye can't!" Conner shouted from the other room, over the TV.

"Shut it!" Murphy called back. Keeva smacked him, and tried to take the spoon back from him. He didn't move, so she sighed and sat down at the table, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them. After he'd been stirring it for a few minutes, he turned to her expectantly. She arched an eyebrow at him, smirking.

"I thought ye said ye could fuckin cook." She teased. He mock-glared at her, then turned and stared, slightly confused at the pot in front of him. She sighed. "Ye taste it. See if it's good." He lifted the spoon, covered in macaroni out of the pot, and eyed it warily for a moment.

"Where'd ye learn how ta cook?" He asked. She rolled her eyes.

"Ye don't live in a house with two kids and _not_ know how ta cook." Her face fell a little, and Murphy quickly took a bite. His eyes widened comically, and Keeva smirked.

"This is fuckin good!" Her smirk widened.

"Ye were expectin it ta be bad?" She asked. He rolled his eyes, dropping the spoon back in the pot.

"That's not what I fuckin meant." He said, and turned back to stirring the macaroni. Keeva tilted her head a little, watching him. He turned around again a moment later, and raised his eyebrows.

"What?" She grinned.

"Well, me mother was right about one thing." She said, getting to her feet and stepped over to where he was standing. His eyebrows went higher.

"And what would that be?" Keeva smirked.

"There's somethin decidedly sexy about a man cookin." His smirk returned, and he leaned down, swiftly capturing her lips with his. His arms slid around her waist, pulling her into him as he deepened the kiss. She suddenly pulled away, her shoulders shaking as she tried vainly to smother her giggles.

"What?" Murphy asked. She shook her head, trying to compose herself.

"You taste like macaroni." A weird look passed over Murphy's face before he smirked at her.

"Oh, come on." They looked up to see Conner in the doorway, making a face. "Are we goin ta fuckin eat or what?" Keeva shifted, trying to pull away, but Murphy locked his hands around her waist, grinning wickedly at her. She smacked him, and Conner groaned.

"Look, I don't mind that tha two of ye are together, but could ye please keep the touchin to a fuckin minimum here? I _would_ like ta eat." Murphy opened his mouth to say something, but between the second smack from Keeva and the slap on the back of the head from his brother, he decided it might _not_ be the best idea, and promptly shut his mouth again.

Keeva used the opportunity to pull away from him and pulled three paper plates down and tossed them on the table. Murphy put out three beers and Conner searched for the long-lost silverware. He finally found three dusty-looking forks, which he rinsed off in the sink and dried before putting them on the table. Keeva found a pot holder and dropped it on the table before putting the pot on top of it. They ate in relative silence, each lost deep in thought.

The thoughts prominent in Murphy's mind weren't exactly the most pleasant. He kept thinking about what he would do if Keeva left. All he knew was that it wouldn't, and couldn't be good. He loved her. He knew that much for sure. He also knew that he couldn't just let her go.

Could he? Was she really better off with her sister and Brigh's kids?

Of course she was. What could he possibly offer her that was better?

Love maybe? A life?

He frowned at the remaining few pieces of macaroni on his plate.

He had to let her go if she wanted to. He always had Conner, anyway.

Noticing his somber mood, Keeva and Conner slipped into the main room and turned on a movie. He didn't even notice that they'd left. She glanced at Conner.

"What's wrong with him?" She asked. Conner groaned, flopping so he was lying down on the couch, his feet splayed out over the arm.

"You." He replied. She paused, then looked down at the beer in her hands. "What ye said earlier really made him think about whatever the fuck it is you two have together." Keeva looked up at him, a slightly accusing look in her eyes.

"Ye told him."

Conner shifted in his seat, looking slightly uncomfortable. "Not exactly." She rolled her eyes.

"Then what exactly?"

"He was telling me he didn't want you ta be part of what we do. And I said ye already were." Keeva nodded, staring down at the top of her beer. After a moment, she brushed her hair out of her eyes and looked up at him. "He didn't take it very fuckin well." She gave him a wan smile.

"I noticed."

"Don't get 'im fuckin' wrong luv, he cares about ye." Keeva nodded, lifting her eyes to meet his.

"I know."

"The thing is, he thinks he just might care too fuckin much." She locked gazes with him. "And it's scarin the shit out o' him. He doesn't know what the fuck ta do. He wants ye to be happy. . ."

"But he's afraid that means me leavin' him, right?" Conner nodded hesitantly, as though worried he was agreeing to the wrong thing. She looked for a moment like she wasn't going to respond in any way. Then she suddenly stood and handed him her beer, disappearing into the kitchen. She found Murphy stashing what was left of the macaroni in the fridge. He turned when she came in, closing the door. His eyes were dark and looked a little worried.

Keeva marched straight up to him, and slapped him on the back of the head. He stared at her, rubbing the offended spot.

"Ow! What tha fuck was that fer?"

She glared at him. "Fer bein' a fuckin' idiot!" His eyebrows raised slightly.

"An' what was I bein' an idiot abou'?" He asked. She smirked.

"Me." His face darkened, and his stance shifted. Before it had been cocky. Like he was just waiting to get a good laugh. Now it was almost defensive, leaning back almost away from her. "Do ye really think I'd just up an' leave ye?" He didn't respond. "Are ye that fuckin dense?"

"You left Brigh and their kids."

"I-" She stopped. "That's different."

"How?" She didn't have an answer, at least not right away. Murphy turned and left the kitchen, flopping down on the couch next to Conner. As soon as Keeva stalked in, Conner got up and grabbed his coat.

"Conn-!"

"No Murph!" Conner snapped. His twin stared at him, apparently shocked. Keeva was too. She'd never actually heard the brothers fight. Not like this. "I've been runnin interference fer two fuckin' days between the two of ye, and I'm gettin fuckin sick of it! So I'm going out ta buy another pack o' smokes, and you two do whatever the fuck it is ye need ta do to reconcile whatever it is ye need ta. But just do it!"

He slammed the door behind him, leaving a stunned silence in the room.

"Keeva-"

"He's right Murph." She said quietly, earning her a slightly panicked look from Murphy. "We can't keep putting him in the middle of us. It's not fuckin fair ta him." Murphy nodded.

"Keeva-"

"No, let me finish. Leaving Brigh and the kids was something I've been planning to do for almost three years, since Braden got old enough to watch his sister on his own. She doesn't really need me anymore. And only God knows why, but I love ye." She said. "And I'm not just going to let that get away from me. I can take care o' meself, and as long as-" She didn't get to finish her rant, because Murphy caught her up in his arms, pressing his lips to hers. Her arms wrapped immediately around his neck, pulling him into her harder. His hands slid down her back and a shiver raced through her body as they found the bottom of her shirt, sliding under it. She shuddered as he gripped her hips, pulling her into him. His thumbs looped through the belt loops of her jeans, and he moved back, forcing her to move with him. They landed on the couch, after he'd managed to maneuver himself on top. His tongue parted her lips, slipping into her mouth as his hands slid up even further on her stomach. Reaching her rib cage, he pulled back, lifting her shirt up off her head. Before he could kiss her again, Keeva slid out from under him, grabbing her shirt. He gave her a confused look, and she gave him a playful grin before slipping out of the room.

Murphy got up and followed her into the back bedroom where she was sprawled out over his bed. He stood at the foot of the bed, and just looked at her for a moment. She was so beautiful. She was his, and she wasn't going anywhere any time soon.

* * *

Conner got back and heard some sounds coming from the back room, and turned the TV up in an attempt to muffle them. It worked to an extent, and he shut his imagination down. He _really_ didn't want to know what was going on, and wasn't even going to think about it. 


	14. Chapter 14

Keeva yanked on a pair of her own jeans, and one of the twin's T-shirts. She wasn't sure which one of theirs it was, but that didn't really matter too much. The only difference was that Murphy's tended to put his on by pulling it down before pulling his arms through, resulting in his shirts being slightly more stretched than Conner's. So, she couldn't really tell whose it was, and it smelled clean.

She decided to skip breakfast and grabbed her coat. She scrawled the boys a quick note and stuck it to the coffee maker, which she turned on before leaving.

She had something to take care of.

* * *

She shifted nervously from foot to foot on the porch. She knew it was a little early, but it was a Thursday morning, and the kids should be at school, John at work, and Brigh at home. 

Brigh answered the door, and looked a little startled to see her sister standing there, hopping from foot to foot in the crisp morning air. But she didn't say anything else.

Keeva decided to go first. "Brigh, I'm sorry." She said. Her sister's stance suddenly softened and she threw her arms around her.

"I'm sorry too!" She exclaimed, releasing her sister. "Come on. I was just making some hot chocolate."

Keeva followed her into the kitchen, sitting down at the table as Brigh poured an second mug of the rich warm liquid. "Brigh-"

"Keeva, listen. I didn't mean it like it sounded." She sighed heavily. "I mean, shit you've been around constantly fer six years." Keeva nodded. "And I was scared that Murphy was just going to whisk you away and we'd never see you again." She added quietly. Keeva put down her mug, and shook her head.

"Brigh, I'm not going anywhere, and neither is Murphy."

"I know Keeva. It's just. . ." She sighed, meeting her sister's waiting blue eyes. "You've barely known the guy a week, and you were ready to leave us fer him." Keeva grabbed her sister's hand across the table.

"Brigh, I'd never let any man get between me and yer kids. I love them. But I need my own life. I can't keep staying here just for them. They don't need me anymore."

"But _I_ do." Brigh said, gripping her sister's arm tightly. "All that shit about me taking care of you was just that. Shit. You're the one whose always taking care of me." Keeva offered her sister a small smile. "I mean, you saved me and my family once, and then you risk your life _again_ to save me." She shook her head. "And you were at every one of Braden's little league games, even the ones I missed."

"Brigh, I was tha coach."

"That's not the _point_. Ye were there, and I wasn't."

"Brigh-" The front door opened, then slammed shut. A second later a series of small light footsteps scurried down the hall. Keeva looked down at her empty hot chocolate and got up to hunt for some more in the cabinet.

"Mommy!" Catrina's voice sounded. "Mommy?"

"In the kitchen honey!" She said. Catrina skipped in. "How was your day?"

"The teacher gave us homework!" She announced proudly. "We've got to color a picture!"

"Wow." Brigh said. Keeva found a package of hot chocolate, but stayed behind the door. If Brigh didn't want Catrina to know she was there, then Catrina wouldn't. "Honey, we've got a visitor."

Catrina's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Aye." Brigh replied. "Go look behind the door." The closet door was flung open even farther and Catrina stared up at Keeva with wide eyes for a second before attaching herself to Keeva's leg.

"Aunt Keeva!" She shrieked. "You're back!" Keeva swung her up into her arms and into a fierce hug.

"Aye." She said, making eye contact with her sister over the girl's shoulder and smiling. Brigh returned the smile. "That I am."

* * *

Keeva shifted, and opened her eyes, smiling slightly. She was, right where she belonged. A soft knock sounded on the door again, reminding her why she'd woken up in the first place. 

"Aunt Keeva?" The soft voice reached her ear, and the door opened a crack. Soft feet padded over to the bed, and Keeva could just make out the girl's face in the dark.

"What is it honey?" She whispered. Catrina held the stuffed rabbit in her arms even tighter.

"I had a bad dream." She said quietly.

"A bad dream?" A lightly accent voice asked, and Murphy raised himself up from behind Keeva, shifting his arm over her waist. Catrina nodded, her eyes wide. "What was it abou'?"

"An alligator was under my bed." She declared. Murphy dropped his head onto Keeva's shoulder, kissing it lightly.

"Why'd ye have ta tell her that?" He asked. She smirked tiredly at him.

"She asked if there were monsters under my bed when I was little. I told her no, they were alligators, not monsters." He shook his head, and climbed over Keeva, picking the little girl up.

"Let's get ye back ta bed." He said. About five minutes later he returned, climbing back over her. She was pretending to be asleep, but he knew she was faking. He draped his arm over her stomach, pulling her closer. She didn't react, so he started planting kisses down her neck. After a moment, she turned over and pulled him into a kiss. After a long moment she broke away, and he rolled over almost on his back so he was leaning against a pillow between himself and the wall. She snuggled herself up against him, tangling her legs with his. She buried her face in his chest as his arm snaked around her waist, pulling her closer as they fell back asleep.

* * *

Conner let himself in the house. He'd been doing it for months now, ever since Keeva had moved back in with her sister. Murphy had been spending more and more time with them, and honestly, he didn't really mind. He just spent more and more time with them too. 

They were all a family now. That was proven by the stomping feet of two kids running down the stairs to greet him when he came in. By the night spent fooling around, the adults drinking beer and playing board games.

Conner had always thought that he and Murphy would each find a woman at the same time, and settle down together. That they'd live near each other, maybe even next door, or even together.

But this-

The weight in his lap shifted, and he glanced down at the little girl. They were sitting down to watch a movie together, and there hadn't been any seats left, so Catrina had just climbed up into his lap and fell asleep. He glanced up at met his brother's eyes across the room, an identical smile pulling at the corners of their mouths.

This, he decided, was just fine.

* * *

And that my readers, is the end of this story. Hope you liked it! 


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